PH-US-Japan trilateral meet to focus on int’l law, security, trade

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US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Department of Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo hold a press conference at Sofitel Philippine Plaza in Pasay City on March 19, 2024. (Zeus Legaspi/INQUIRER.net)

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines,  United States (US), and Japan will discuss ways to uphold international law at the upcoming trilateral summit between the three nations, on April 11, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Tuesday.

This comes as tensions continue to rise in the West Philippine Sea following several incidents in the disputed waters involving Chinese and Philippine vessels and the use of water cannons on Filipino ships by the Chinese Coast Guard.

In a press briefing in Pasay City, Blinken told reporters that the summit between the countries’ leaders seeks to recognize and address topics regarding the shared interests of the three countries in the Indo-Pacific region, more critically, in preserving international law.

“(It’s) something that all three [countries] feel very strongly about,” he explained.

In the same press conference, Blinken said that Beijing’s actions towards the Filipino fishers and troops in the West Philippine Sea are clear violations of international law and Filipino rights.

Beyond security in the region, the summit also seeks to establish better cooperation in economic growth in the areas of clean energy and emerging technologies in the Indo-Pacific, Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo said, as earlier reported in a statement by US Press Secretary Karen Jean-Pierre.

“The basic aim, essentially, is to reaffirm our historical ties with friendship, our commitment to share democratic values, our shared vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific and how to further promote prosperity, security, and peace of our peoples in the region,” Manalo said.

“We are stronger when we do it together and bring together all the complementaries that we have. So that’s really what the summit’s about,” Blinken added.

The trilateral summit, which will be held at the White House, will include US President Joe Biden, Philippine President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., and Japan’s Prime Minister Kishida Fumio.

Blinken will be in the Philippines from March 18 to 19. He is set to meet with President Marcos at Malacañang Palace on Tuesday afternoon.