THE TRILATERAL summit would result in deeper collaboration between the Philippines, the United States, and Japan, paving the way for regional stability and economic development, House Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez said on Thursday.
“The historic meeting… marks a significant milestone in regional diplomacy as it reaffirms the Philippines’ role as an essential ally in promoting stability, security, and economic development across the Indo-Pacific,” Mr. Romualdez said in a statement.
Leaders of the three nations are expected to discuss how they can boost their economic ties as well as their maritime cooperation amid increasing tensions in the South China Sea, over which China has made an encompassing claim.
“The main intent of this trilateral agreement is for us to be able to continue to flourish, to be able to help one another, and of course to keep the peace in the South China Sea and the freedom of navigation,” President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. said in his speech before departing for Washington. D.C.
The Philippines is a key player in the Indo-Pacific region given its strategic significance, Mr. Romualdez said.
The South China Sea is a conduit for global commerce as more than $3 trillion worth of trade passes through the waterbody annually.
Beijing has grown more assertive in its claim, deploying its vessels by the scores even within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone, despite a 2016 arbitral ruling that China’s claim to almost the entirety of the South China Sea has no legal basis.
“The ability of nations to navigate freely is essential for trade, communication, and regional security,” Mr. Romualdez said.
Commenting on the trilateral meeting, Ateneo de Manila University Political Science Lecturer Hansley A. Juliano said the summit is rooted in the need to ensure that Manila will remain closely tied to the United States, representing their interests in the Indo-Pacific region.
“The big challenge here is that the US and Japan are still mostly relying on Official Development Assistance and military presence to keep the Philippines onside, especially now that there is once again a genuine external threat to their borders and interests within the Asia-Pacific,” he told BusinessWorld in a Facebook Messenger chat.
There is a possibility for the Philippines to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership due to the trilateral talks, a move seen as enhancing the “market access of Philippine goods beyond ASEAN and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership,” John Paolo R. Rivera, president and chief economist at Oikonomia Advisory & Research, Inc., said.
The potential economic and strategic benefits from the summit are most welcome, Filomeno S. Sta. Ana III, Action for Economic Reform coordinator, said. “But at the same time, I hope that these talks are not meant to exacerbate geopolitical tensions in the region.” — Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio
