There are no formal talks yet between Manila and Tokyo on a possible Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) with Japan, President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. said Wednesday.
"So the VFA equivalent hindi pa talaga namin napapag-usapan formally 'yan," the President said in a chance interview with the press on board PR001.
"I don't know if the Prime Minister [Kishida Fumio] will take it up. But so far, there have not been any formal proposals in that," he added.
When asked for his reaction to Japan’s assistance in helping the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) in terms of capacity-building like providing equipment so it can set up a base or station in Zambales, Marcos said it has been "ongoing."
“Yung support nila sa Coast Guard, matagal na yan… that kind of cooperation has been ongoing. Siguro sa kanilang palagay, the next step is to the improvement, rehabilitation sa Subic, para nga sa Coast Guard," Marcos noted.
"Naturally, the reason behind all this is they would like to have more patrols along… South China Sea para naman we can assure the freedom of passage,” he continued.
Fostering cooperation is one of the agendas of the President’s working visit to Tokyo, pointing to the need for the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to continuously modernize.
“So this is a new element to our relationship because we’re now talking about the security of the region. So being, of course, all interested in the same thing, i.e., security in the region, I think cooperation is not a bad thing,” the President said.
President Marcos is in Japan for a working visit from February 8-12, where he is set to forge closer political ties, stronger defense, and security cooperation, as well as lasting economic partnerships with the Philippines’ Asian neighbor.
