Through their respective top military officials, the Philippines joined Japan and the United States in trilateral discussions to strengthen cooperation and advance maritime security in the Indo-Pacific area.
Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff Gen. Andres Centino, Japan Joint Staff (JJS) Chief of Staff Gen. Yoshihide Yoshida, and US Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM) commander Adm. John Aquilino met last Saturday for the fourth AFP-JJS-USINDOPACOM Trilateral Leaders' Engagement on the margins of the International Institute for Strategic Studies 20th Asia Security Summit, also known as the "Shangri-La Dialogue."
Centino and the Philippines organized the summit, which was centered on the leaders' shared viewpoints on regional concerns and improved trilateral cooperation between the Philippines, Japan, and the US.
Aquilino underlined USINDOPACOM's commitment to enhancing US-allied collaboration in the Indo-Pacific area to address security-related challenges, prevent illegal maritime activity, and support the application of international law to dispute resolution.
The leaders also discussed the significance of boosting multilateral operations and the enormous potential for enhancing collaboration between the US, Japan, and the Philippines.
Defense ministers from Southeast Asia's Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Timor-Leste met with US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin III last Friday in Singapore to discuss priorities for enhancing cooperation in support of the region's stability, security, and prosperity.
Austin underscored the crucial role the ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting (ADMM)-Plus continues to play in fostering multilateral collaboration to solve regional concerns, despite the fact that all of these nations are members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
Meanwhile, defense ministers and delegation leaders from Southeast Asia reaffirmed their support for US cooperative efforts in the area, notably in significant forums like the ADMM-Plus.
Austin also emphasized how the US continues to support regional maritime security initiatives, such as the Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness project, the US Maritime Security Initiative, the ADMM-Plus Experts' Working Group on Maritime Security, and expanded US Coast Guard regional maritime law enforcement programs.

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Philippines, US, Japan strengthen maritime security ties