Japanese Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru wants "to further deepen cooperation with the Philippines" as he and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. agreed to proceed with the procedures for the early implementation of the recently signed Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA).

In the Facebook page of the Prime Minister's Office of Japan,it said Ishiba, who is visiting Laos to attend ASEAN-related Summit meetings, held informal talks with Marcos on Thursday.

"Prime Minister Ishiba gave greetings on his inauguration as Prime Minister and stated that he would like to further deepen cooperation with the Philippines in the midst of an increasingly challenging regional security environment," a provisional translation of the summary of talk between the two leaders stated.

"The two leaders confirmed that they will proceed with the procedures for the early entry into force of the Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) signed between two countries last July and also exchanged views on cooperation in the areas of economic security and agricultural technology," it added.

The RAA was signed by Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. and Japanese Foreign Minister Kamikawa Yoko in the presence of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ,Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo and Japanese Defense Minister Kihara Minoru after the joint courtesy call in the Malacanang or before the 2+2 meeting last July 8, 2024.

During their informal talks, Marcos expressed how he was pleased to meet Prime Minister Ishiba immediately after his inauguration.

The Prime Minister's Office of Japan said "Marcos also expressed that he was delighted to see the strengthening of bilateral relations between Japan and the Philippines as well as the progress in Japan-U.S.-Philippines cooperation, and that he would like to further enhance cooperation with Prime Minister Ishiba."

Malacanang has yet to issue a statement on the informal talks. Robina Asido/DMS