BBM, Biden, Ishiba discuss China's SCS behavior

The Philippines, the United States and Japan vowed to further deepen cooperation under a trilateral arrangement in the face of rising tensions in Asia’s waters, the three countries said following a call among their leaders.

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President Marcos met virtually yesterday morning with outgoing US President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.

The White House said in a statement that the three leaders discussed China’s “dangerous and unlawful behavior in the South China Sea” and agreed on the importance of continued coordination in the Indo-Pacific region.

Japan’s foreign ministry separately said in a statement that the three leaders opposed “unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force” in the East and South China Seas, without mentioning Beijing.

In a statement, the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said the three leaders agreed “to enhance and deepen trilateral ties, particularly in the areas of economic, maritime and technology cooperation.”

The call followed a first-of-itskind summit meeting of Marcos, Biden and then Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Washington last April to uphold international law and regional stability.

Biden, who will step down next Monday, was quoted as saying in Manila’s readout he is “optimistic” his successor, US president-elect Donald Trump, would see the value of continuing the partnership.

“Simply put, our countries have an interest in continuing this partnership and institutionalizing our cooperation across our governments so that it is built to last,” Biden said.

Marcos said he is “confident” the three countries will sustain the gains in deepening their diplomatic ties.

Japan and the Philippines – bound by bilateral defense treaties with the US – are also both involved in separate territorial disputes with China in the East and South China Seas, respectively.