The Philippines and Indonesia have signed an agreement which effectively renewed the defense cooperation between the two neighboring Southeast Asian countries.
Department of National Defense Officer-in-Charge (DND-OIC) Jose Faustino Jr. and Indonesian Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto inked the “Agreement on Cooperative Activities between the Philippines and Indonesia in the Field of Defense and Security” on the sidelines of the state visit of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in Indonesia on Monday, Sept. 5.
“The renewal of the Agreement provides a framework for cooperation between the two defense establishments,” DND spokesperson Arsenio Andolong said on Tuesday, Sept. 6.
“Such a framework would also enable the Philippines and Indonesia to collaborate in capacity building to address shared concerns, particularly in the Southeast Asian region,” he added.
The Philippines considers Indonesia as one of its “closest” regional defense partners, according to Andolong.
The signing of the pact was seen as a reaffirmation of the commitment of both countries under the 1997 Defense Cooperation Agreement, and a complement of the 1975 Border Patrol and Crossing Agreements between Manila and Jakarta.
The Philippines and Indonesia share a maritime boundary on the Celebes Sea, which is why they have been coordinating operations to address security threats and challenges at sea such as kidnapping and piracy, among others.
Together with Malaysia, the Philippines and Indonesia are also pursuing a trilateral cooperation in view of the security challenges and maritime areas of common concerns.
As founding members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nation, they also work together under the ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting (ADMM), which is the highest defense consultative and cooperative mechanism in ASEAN, and other multilateral fora based on common security interests in support of the ASEAN Centrality, a concept aiming to maintain the member-states’ commitment to the regional bloc’s success.