Japan and the Philippines agreed on Monday to establish a strategic dialogue between the Japanese Self-Defense Forces and the Philippine military, amid security challenges.Japan's Kyodo News Agency reported that Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani and his Philippine counterpart Gilberto Teodoro also agreed to set up a high-level framework to promote further defense equipment and technology cooperation.During a joint press conference held in Manila, the Japanese Defense Minister stressed the need of increasingly severe security environment, we firmly agreed on the need to elevate defense cooperation to a higher level.Security ties between Japan and the Philippines, both close US allies, have deepened in recent years amid China's increasing military activities and territorial claims in regional water.
