Japan defense chief visits 2 Luzon bases

Japanese Defence Minister Gen Nakatani  —Photo by JIJI Press/AFP

SAN FERNANDO, LA UNION, Philippines — Japan’s Defense Minister Gen Nakatani is in the Philippines for his first official visit to the country since taking office in October, as part of efforts to reinforce bilateral ties between the two countries amid China’s intensifying military activities in the region.

Nakatani visited Wallace Air Station here on Sunday, where mobile and fixed Japanese-built long-range air surveillance radar systems were set in place. He also toured the air defense simulation and wargaming center, as well as the command and control center.

The Philippine Air Force formally received the J/FPS-3ME warning and control radar system built by Mitsubishi Electric Corp. in late 2023. It was the first of four long-range surveillance radars—three of them fixed and one in a mobile setup—that the Department of National Defense ordered in 2020 under a P5.5 billion government-to-government deal.

Before his tour at the Wallace Air Station, Nakatani visited Basa Air Base in Pampanga province, one of the nine military bases where Americans have access under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement.

The ‘Squad’

Nakatani’s trip to key military facilities came one day ahead of his bilateral meeting with Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. today, Feb. 24.

Teodoro said the meeting will include “in-depth” discussions on the bilateral, trilateral cooperation with the United States and the “Squad,” referring to the quadrilateral group involving the Philippines, the United States, Japan, and Australia.

The Philippines and Japan, both longtime allies of the United States, have taken a strong line against China’s assertion of territorial claims in the region, including in the South China Sea and East China Sea, where they have separate territorial disputes.

Manila and Tokyo signed a key defense pact last July that allows them to deploy troops on each other’s territory. The Japanese parliament has yet to ratify the deal this year before its implementation.