Philippines, Japan, US reaffirm cooperation

MANILA, Philippines — Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo held a trilateral meeting in New York with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Japanese Foreign Minister Kamikawa Yoko to ensure cooperation in establishing a rules-based order in the South and East China seas and in the Indo-Pacific region.

The three officials met on Friday during the UN General Assembly (UNGA) High-Level Week in New York.

In his remarks before the meeting held at the Palace Hotel, Blinken said the three countries “believe strongly that our collaboration, not only on a bilateral basis but on a trilateral basis, can produce very positive benefits not only for our countries but also for other countries and partners in the region and beyond.”

Blinken added that the US would continue to extend assistance to the Philippines and strengthen cooperation with their allies “to maintain peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific and also to foster, to strengthen economic resilience and to promote the common prosperity of our people.”

In a statement, US Department of State spokesman Matthew Miller said the three countries “committed to uphold our shared values of freedom, democracy and respect for human rights, and reaffirmed our shared vision, as equal and sovereign partners, for a free and open Indo-Pacific region that upholds international law.”

Miller also said that the three countries vowed to “call out behavior that is inconsistent with international law,” citing China’s recent actions near Second Thomas Shoal, also called Ayungin Shoal, “that interfered with the Philippines’ lawful exercise of high seas freedom of navigation.”

Chinese Coast Guard and maritime militia vessels had interfered in recent Philippine resupply missions to the grounded