Vietnam, Philippines to sign defense cooperation agreement

Vietnam and the Philippines are set to sign a memorandum of understanding on defense cooperation that would see the two South China Sea claimants strengthening their joint activities at sea, where both face an assertive China. 

During a visit to Manila by the Vietnamese defense minister, the two Southeast Asian neighbors agreed on Friday to ink a memorandum later this year on boosting such cooperation. 

The strengthened ties come at a time of heightened tensions, especially between the Philippines and China, which are at loggerheads over some of the reefs and atolls in the waterway.

Although the Philippines and Vietnam have overlapping claims in the waterway, they are on good diplomatic terms and have cooperated at sea. Manila and Hanoi established a strategic partnership in 2015 and have been working to together manage their claims amid new maritime challenges posed by their big Chinese neighbor.

“We undertake to sign a memorandum on defense cooperation within this year. Hopefully, in time for the celebration of the 80th founding anniversary of the Vietnamese Armed Forces,” Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. told reporters Friday. 

Hanoi will mark that milestone on Dec. 22.

“Realizing the fundamental need to maintain peace, stability, and ensuring security, safety, and freedom of navigation and aviation, in the ASEAN [Association of Southeast Asian Nations] region, particularly in the South China Sea, we talked about making more concrete and effective steps of working together and with our ASEAN partners to ensure the continuity of these desires,” Teodoro said, adding that the two sides also underscored the “primacy of international law.”

Both the Philippines and Vietnam are ASEAN member-states. Other ASEAN claimants in the potentially mineral- and gas-rich South China Sea are Brunei and Malaysia. 

Indonesia, while not a party to the broader dispute, has a separate territorial spat with China over the Natuna Islands.

Teodoro’s Vietnamese counterpart, Gen. Phan Van Giang, was visiting Manila “to materialize the common understandings” achieved during the state visit to Hanoi by Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in January, according to the Vietnamese ministry’s Quan Doi Nhan Dan newspaper. 

“Realizing the fundamental need to maintain peace, stability, and ensuring security, safety, and freedom of navigation and aviation, in the ASEAN [Association of Southeast Asian Nations] region, particularly in the South China Sea, we talked about making more concrete and effective steps of working together and with our ASEAN partners to ensure the continuity of these desires,” Teodoro said, adding that the two sides also underscored the “primacy of international law.”

Apart from the Philippines and Vietnam, other ASEAN member-states that have claims in the potentially mineral- and gas-rich South China Sea are Brunei and Malaysia. 

Both ministers discussed ways to “build mechanisms for greater cooperation,” Teodoro said, noting that “maritime security” was on top of the agenda, which also included cybersecurity, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. 

Teodoro said they also agreed to continue to “enhanced military-to-military cooperation in the naval, air and army and land force spheres.”

Coast guard forces from Vietnam and the Philippines also agreed to set up a hotline to manage “non-traditional security challenges,” and share information, the Vietnamese minister told President Marcos during a courtesy call to the Malacañang Palace, according to the Vietnamese newspaper.

Vietnam’s defense chief visited Manila three weeks after coast guard ships from both countries conducted their first-ever joint drills.

Marcos described Giang’s first visit to the Philippines as a “very significant point in the history between our two countries.”

“The Philippines and Vietnam have enjoyed good relations. … We now talk about defense cooperation, security cooperation, maritime cooperation, and certainly, on the area of trade as well,” the Philippine News Agency quoted Marcos as telling Giang. 

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Troubled Waters: The South China Sea

Giang said the two countries had “very good” interactions and dialogues, especially when it comes to “navy-to-navy discussions.”

As neighbors at sea, Hanoi and Manila shared interests in security and safety of navigation amid unpredictable challenges, the Vietnamese minister said.

“Vietnam and the Philippines are two neighboring countries sharing a maritime border and are both active and responsible members of the ASEAN community. Since the official establishment of diplomatic relations in 1976, bilateral relations between the two countries have continuously developed,” he said.

However, the four-star general, who fought in the Sino-Vietnam border war in 1979, did not refer to China or its activities in disputed waters.

Instead, he reiterated that Vietnam was pursuing a so-called “Four Nos” defense policy: No military alliances; no siding with one country  against another; no foreign military bases in Vietnamese territory or using Vietnam as leverage to counteract other countries; and no force or threat of force in international relations.

While a military alliance between Vietnam and the Philippines is unlikely, they can still bolster exchanges and joint activities. 

The Philippine navy has agreed to send a team to Vietnam’s 2nd Defense Expo in December.

Radio Free Asia (RFA) is a news service affiliated with BenarNews. Jason Gutierrez for BenarNews in Manila contributed to this report.