Cooperating with Philippines, US to protect South China Sea: Japan PM Fumio Kishida

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on Saturday that Japan, the Philippines, and the United States are working together to protect the freedom of the South China Sea. Kishida made this statement during his visit to the Philippines. He met with the Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, where they agreed to start negotiations on a reciprocal troop access deal to strengthen military cooperation amid an increasingly assertive China, reported Reuters. Both the Philippines and Japan are close allies of the United States and are concerned about what they see as aggressive actions by Chinese ships in the South China Sea, where there have been disputes over who controls the waters for many years. Last month, there were disagreements between China and the Philippines over a collision in the South China Sea, as Chinese vessels blocked Philippine boats delivering supplies to their forces in the area. China claims that it has sovereignty over most of the South China Sea, even in areas that other countries like Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam claim as part of their exclusive economic zones. However, in 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration ruled that China’s claims in the South China Sea had no legal basis. Interestingly, Japan doesn’t make claims in the South China Sea but has a separate maritime dispute with China in the East China Sea. With inputs from agencies