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Defense and foreign affairs chiefs of Japan and the Philippines "urged for an immediate stop of the use of force and the withdrawal of the military forces from the territory of Ukraine."

Recalling the United Nations General Assembly resolutions, the defense and foreign affairs chiefs "shared the view that aggression against a UN Member State which infringes upon its sovereignty and territorial integrity, constitutes a serious violation of international law prohibiting the use of force, and is a grave breach of the UN Charter, and deplored the dire humanitarian consequences of the hostilities, especially in Bucha.''

News reports and pictures taken from Bucha, a small town near Kyiv, recently showed hundreds of executed civilians lying on the streets after Russian forces withdrew from the city.

The call was made by Foreign Affairs Minister Hayashi Yoshimasa, Defense Minister Kishi Nobuo, Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin, Jr., and Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana during the inaugural Japan-Philippines Foreign and Defense ministerial meeting in Tokyo on Saturday.

"Recalling the 1982 Manila Declaration on the Peaceful Settlement of International Disputes, the Ministers highlighted the need to exert all efforts to de-escalate the situation and continue pursuing dialogue and diplomacy to settle disputes, maintain international peace and security, halt the growing number of civilian and military losses and casualties, and avert further humanitarian crisis," a joint statement said.

"The Ministers also expressed deep concern about the possible use of nuclear or chemical weapons in armed conflict and stressed that neither the threat nor the use of any kind of weapon of mass destruction can ever be tolerated under any circumstances," it added. Robina Asido/ DMS