By Peng Nian
Even before the farce surrounding Japan-Philippines maritime delimitation has come to an end, military ties between the two countries have escalated yet again. On July 7, Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. announced that the Philippines would acquire five soon-to-be-retired Abukuma-class destroyer escorts from the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, with delivery of all five vessels expected within two to three years. Earlier, on May 28, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. agreed to accelerate the transfer of defense equipment, including Abukuma-class destroyer escorts and TC-90 patrol aircraft.
In 2011, Japan and the Philippines established a strategic partnership, ushering in a bilateral "honeymoon period". That period was spearheaded by then-Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and Philippine President Benigno Aquino III. The former initiated the "nationalization" of the Diaoyu Dao, while the latter was the driving force behind the so-called "South China Sea Arbitration". In an uncanny parallel, the Japan-Philippines Comprehensive Strategic Partnership also has two key architects: Sanae Takaichi, who has further undermined China-Japan relations, and Ferdinand Marcos Jr., a troublemaker in the South China Sea.
From May 26 to 29 this year, during Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s visit to Japan, the two countries reached a consensus on launching formal negotiations on a General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA). Once the GSOMIA enters into force, the two countries will no longer need to route intelligence through the United States during joint exercises, maritime patrols, and emergency response operations, establishing a direct intelligence-sharing channel. For Japan, this would mark the first extension of its intelligence cooperation into Southeast Asia, representing an important breakthrough in its military cooperation with countries in the region. More importantly, Japan would gain direct access to important intelligence gathered by the United States and the Philippines on China's military activities in the South China Sea. For the Philippines, exchanging intelligence for Japanese military assistance may seem like a worthwhile bargain.
Although the two sides have found common cause and each stands to gain what it wants, the "quasi-military alliance" built on intelligence sharing could drag both into a future conflict should hostilities break out.
In terms of arms sales, the Philippines ordered three FPS-3 radars and one TPS-P14 mobile radar from Japan in 2020, marking Japan's first major export deal involving finished military equipment. In 2023, the Philippines also sought the transfer of several helicopters scheduled for retirement from the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force.
If the Abukuma-class destroyer escorts are transferred as planned within the next three years, the Philippines' inventory of Japanese military equipment will be further expanded. However, whether the Abukuma-class destroyer escorts or the TC-90 patrol aircraft under discussion, all are second-hand equipment. Such a limited enhancement of military capability is essentially Japan emboldening the Philippines and encouraging it to stand on the front line of anti-China provocations and confrontation. Japanese equipment may help put on a show, but on a real battlefield, it will become little more than a sitting duck.
As an Asian nation that once suffered greatly under Japanese militarist aggression, the Philippines is now colluding with its former aggressor for short-term geopolitical calculations, while turning a blind eye to the resurgence of "new militarism" in Japan. Such short-sighted behavior, which betrays history and disregards the nation's painful past, will not bring genuine security to the Philippines. Instead, it will only turn the country into a pawn in major-power rivalry and draw it ever deeper into a dangerous whirlpool.
(The author is the Dean of the Institute of Regional and Country Studies, Guangdong University of Petrochemical Technology)
Editor's note: Originally published on huanqiu.com, this article is translated from Chinese into English and edited by the China Military Online. The information and opinions in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of eng.chinamil.com.cn.