The Philippines, Japan and the United States have agreed to pursue efforts to make their dream of a free and open Indo-Pacific come true as officials of the three sides met to discuss future collaborations.
High-level officials from the Japanese embassy as well as the Philippines, Japan and the US coast guards concluded on Saturday their trilateral working-level meeting, where they agreed on the necessity to conduct periodical exercises to ensure stability and security of the region.
Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines Koshikawa Kazuhiko described the meeting as "productive," saying that in pursuing a free and open region, "working with like-minded partners is an important step in realizing our goal of a rules-based maritime order."
Disclosing other details about the meeting, the Japanese Embassy in Manila said coast guard personnel from the three countries will conduct yet another joint maritime drills from June 5 to 7.
“The trilateral maritime exercise aims to strengthen interoperability between the JCG, PCG, and USCG through communication exercises, maneuvering drills, photo exercises, maritime law enforcement training, search and rescue (SAR), and passing exercises,” the embassy said.
The three agencies also agreed to continue their trilateral efforts in human resource development as they highlighted the importance of joint trainings.
“They have also agreed to closer information exchange, and confirmed further coordination for expanded cooperation in various fields,” the Japanese embassy added.