The defense leaders of the United States, Australia, Japan and Philippines expressed objection to China's use of its coast guard and maritime militia vessels to harass Philippine ships in the South China Sea.

In a joint statement issued following the quadrilateral meeting in Hawaii, United States Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin III, Japanese Minister of Defense, Kihara Minoru, Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. and Australian Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles expressed serious concern about the situation in the East and South China Seas.

"They strongly objected to the dangerous use of coast guard and maritime militia vessels in the South China Sea," the statement said.

"They reiterated serious concern over the PRC’s repeated obstruction of Philippine vessels’ exercise of high seas freedom of navigation and the disruption of supply lines to Second Thomas Shoal, which constitute dangerous and destabilizing conduct," it added.

During their meeting the four defense chiefs of the four countries also emphasized the importance of upholding freedoms of navigation and overflight, and respect for international law, as reflected particularly in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

"They called upon the PRC to abide by the final and legally binding 2016 South China Sea Arbitral Tribunal Award and resolved to work together to support states exercising their rights and freedoms in the South China Sea," it stated.

As they highlighted the significance of collaboration to advance a shared vision for a free, open, secure and prosperous Indo-Pacific, the four leaders also emphasized their commitment to strengthen cooperation in support of regional security and stability, following the Maritime Cooperative Activity in the Philippines’ Exclusive Economic Zone on April 7, 2024 .

The defense leaders also "discussed opportunities to further advance defense cooperation, including through continued maritime cooperation in the South China Sea, enhanced procedures to enable coordination and information sharing arrangements, as well as strengthening capacity building."

"They underscored that multilateral defense cooperation among the four countries is growing stronger than ever, and welcomed progress in coordination at all levels," it statement said. Robina Asido/DMS