US, PH, Japan armies bolster defense ties in 1st trilateral meet

From the Philippine News Agency (Dec 13, 2022): US, PH, Japan armies bolster defense ties in 1st trilateral meet (By Priam Nepomuceno)

BOOSTING DEFENSE TIES. Ranking military officials of the Philippines, United States and Japan pose for a photo opportunity on the sidelines of Japan-Philippine-US Trilateral Key Leaders’ Engagement at Camp Asaka in Tokyo, Japan on Dec. 11, 2022. Joining the meeting (L-R) were US Marine Forces Pacific commander Lt. Gen. William Jurney, US Army Pacific Commanding General Charles Flynn, Japan Ground Self-Defense Force Chief of Staff Gen. Yoshida Yoshihide, Philippine Army commander Lt. Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. and Philippine Marine Corps Commandant Maj. Gen. Charlton Sean Gaerlan. (Photo courtesy of Philippine Army)

MANILA – The Philippine Army (PA) along with its American and Japanese counterparts held their first-ever trilateral meeting on Dec. 11, aimed at bolstering defense cooperation among the three partner nations.

In a statement Monday night, PA spokesperson Col. Xerxes Trinidad said the meeting, known as the Japan-Philippine-US Trilateral Key Leaders’ Engagement, was held at Camp Asaka in Tokyo.

Present during the meeting were PA chief Lt. Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr., Japan Ground Self-Defense Force chief-of-staff Gen. Yoshida Yoshihide and United States Army Pacific (USARPAC) commander Gen. Charles Flynn.

"(The meeting aims) to bolster the defense cooperation and partnership among the three long-standing defense partners in the Indo-Pacific region," Trinidad said.

Meanwhile, Philippine Marine Corps commandant Maj. Gen. Charlton Sean Gaerlan and US Marine Forces Pacific commander Lt. Gen. William Jurney also joined the high-level meeting.

“Our armies have strong bilateral engagements with one another so having this trilateral cooperation is truly a great opportunity for us in the Philippine Army to further advance our capabilities,” Brawner said.

The trilateral meeting sets the stage for regularizing high-level talks among the Philippines, Japan and US ground forces which also strengthens future multilateral cooperation frameworks.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1190628