Australia and Japan have committed to supporting the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) as they jointly expressed concern about China's coercive activities against the Philippines in the West Philippine Sea, which they said are now happening "with high frequency."
Defense and foreign ministers of Australia and Japan met in Victoria on Thursday, Sept. 5, to discuss their bilateral relations and other regional and international concerns, which included the Chinese harassment against Filipinos in the waters.
Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles and its Foreign Minister Penny Wong as well as Japanese Defense Minister Kihara Minoru and its Foreign Minister Kamikawa Yoku issued their joint statement following their discussion.
They said they are opposing any coercive actions that could escalate tensions and undermine regional stability, including the militarization of disputed features.
“We emphasized the importance of freedom of navigation and overflight and the peaceful resolution of disputes in accordance with international law, in particular the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and reaffirmed that the 2016 South China Sea Arbitral Tribunal Award is final and legally binding on the parties to the dispute,” they said.
Australia and Japan are vocal allies of the Philippines when it comes to its fight for sovereignty over the West Philippine Sea, which China unilaterally and illegally claims to be its own.
Along with the US, Australia and Japan have bilateral and multilateral maritime cooperation with the Philippines to ensure that the rules-based order is maintained in the part of the region.
Following the four officials' meeting for the 11th Australia-Japan Foreign and Defence Ministerial Consultations, Canberra and Tokyo agreed to further deepen and expand their strategic and security cooperation "to include all tools of statecraft to help prevent conflict and maintain peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific."
"Our partnership is vital to delivering practical benefits to the region to enhance economic security and resilience, secure funding for quality infrastructure in the region, including undersea cable infrastructure, counter information manipulation and reduce the risk of misunderstanding and miscalculation," they said.
They said they will also reinforce their approaches to countries in Southeast Asia, with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in the center.
They warned to work together towards mutually decided priorities and joint projects with ASEAN and Southeast Asian partners to improve regional economic, security and climate resilience to security challenges, and implement the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific.
That included enhancing "civil maritime cooperation with the partners in the region, including support for the Philippine Coast Guard."
They also reaffirmed their commitment to work with partners, including through the Quad, to support a free and open Indo-Pacific that is inclusive and resilient.