Philippines open to ''triangular cooperation'' with Japan and India
The Philippines is open to "triangular cooperation" with Japan and India as it expressed hopes to initiate maritime dialogue with India.
"Trilateral triangular cooperation, it has to be formalized. In fact, if you notice, in my statement I said okay, we had the maritime dialogue, but track two with India. We haven't gotten to the track one that is the government so they think there's certain steps that should be undertaken," Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Ma. Theresa Lazaro said in a forum in Makati on Friday.
"The potential is always there. It's very good. Of course, Japan has always been a part of, in all aspects. Connectivity, infrastructure, people to people. Japan has already proven itself. So for India... we're developing a stronger linkage also with India that started when (Foreign) Secretary (Enrique) Manalo I think went to India last year. And that was the first time our Indian friends have mentioned the arbitral tribunal decision," she said.
Lazaro said "trilateral cooperation is an important feature for the present global order characterized by the multiplicity of actors."
"It has received increased attention in the recent past as more states up for this arrangement, driven by congruent goals and common concerns such as economic and security domains," she said.
"This makes it relatively easier to manage among the partners compared to larger mini lateral configurations. This is also nimble given the partnerships can be forged in selected areas. Moreover, it is stable enough to stand on its own, much like a three legged stool," she said.
Embassy of Japan in the Philippines Deputy Chief of Mission Kenichi Matsuda mentioned that Japan is also looking "forward to the continued development of bilateral relations between India and the Philippines".
"United in our shared responsibility, India’s growing efforts in supporting the development of the Philippines, especially in the areas of defense capacity modernization, maritime security, and humanitarian assistance and disaster response, holistically contributes to reaffirming our shared vision of a Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP)," he said.
"The FOIP vision we collectively share provides a solid foundation for transformative cooperation to transpire. Guided by the spirit of co-creation, a triangular partnership between the Philippines, India and Japan can bring about a nexus of sustainable and collaborative efforts that may shape the future of the Indo-Pacific region in the coming years," he added.
Lazaro also noted that the triangular cooperation between Philippines, India and Japan can also "help drive the economic engines of this country towards shared economic prosperity in the region".
"In the first place. The early concept behind trilateral cooperation was economic, particularly development in nature, it is only apropos that synergies and value enhancement in this area be one of the cornerstones in this type of cooperation," she said.
Lazaro mentioned that the Philippines has trilateral mechanisms with "Indonesia and in Malaysia in another one with the United States and Japan."
"The Philippines, Indonesia Malaysia trilateral cooperative arrangement allows the parties to closely coordinate and cooperate in addressing piracy and terrorism the common maritime borders on the other hand, the Philippine United States, Japan trilateral mechanism aims at enhancing trilateral cooperation and response capabilities based on the Japan-US alliance and Philippine-US alliance in order to maintain peace and stability in the Indo Pacific region," she said.
Lazaro also mentioned that the Philippines hopes to initiate a maritime dialogue with India.
"The Philippines can leverage its existing maritime dialogue mechanisms for future trilateral cooperation in the maritime area. Currently, the Philippines has eight maritime dialogue partners, including Japan, the Philippines hopes to initiate a maritime dialogue with India at the track one level in due course," she said.
Lazaro said the major maritime dialogue partners of the Philippines include the United States, Japan, European Union and Australia. Robina Asido/DMS
