Japan, US and Philippines reaffirm importance of navigation freedom

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The foreign ministers of Japan, the US and the Philippines discussed the situation in the East and South China seas during their first trilateral meeting.

PHOTO: AFP

TOKYO - The foreign ministers of Japan, the US and the Philippines on July 10 reaffirmed the importance of freedom of navigation as they discussed the situation in the East and South China seas amid Beijing’s aggressive maritime behaviour.

In the first trilateral ministerial meeting involving the three countries since US President Donald Trump’s return to the White House in January, the ministers confirmed their opposition to any unilateral actions toward attempting to change the status quo “by force or coercion”, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said.

Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and their Philippine counterpart Maria Theresa Lazaro took part in the meeting held on the sidelines of

gatherings related to Asean

The US and its two Asian allies have been stepping up maritime cooperation, holding in June a joint training among their coast guards in an area off Kagoshima Prefecture in south-western Japan. KYODO