Philippine, Japanese defense chiefs meet in Manila

Philippine defense chief Avelino Cruz on Monday met with visiting Japanese Self-Defense Agency chief Yocshinori Ohno in what signaled the start of and increased security cooperation between the two countries.

Emerging after a two-hour closed door meeting with his counterpart, Cruz said they agreed to increase cooperation in the areas of maritime security, disaster management, counter-terrorism and training.

"This is a historic visit," Cruz said of Ohno's visit, the first made by a Japanese defense minister to the Philippines since World War II.

"The first step is to develop a mechanism for an annual continuity of the political security dialogue," Cruz said in a news briefing.

Since Japan's Constitution restricts the sharing of their military hardware, training will focus mainly on education and training, Armed Forces deputy chief Lt. Gen. Edilberto Adan said.

"There are restrictions in the Japanese Constitution for provision of military hardware so what that department of National Defense and the Afp are exploring are the non-traditional areas, for example in education and training," Adan added. He said the Philippines and Japan would make an effort to hold talks between senior and middle-level officials once a year.

Ohno did not join Cruz at the press briefing as he had to rush to make a courtesy call to Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.

By sharing information, the two countries' maritime officials could intercept pirates, drug traffickers, and even terrorists, Cruz said.

Both being prone to earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and storms,the Philippines and Japan could share information on disaster response, he said.