By AFP | 2025-01-29

The Philippines and New Zealand are negotiating an agreement that would allow them to deploy troops on each other's soil as concerns over maritime tensions with China grow.

Manila has been seeking to boost defense ties in the Asia-Pacific region and beyond in the face of China's growing confidence in asserting its claims over the hotspot South China Sea.

A first round of talks was held in Manila on January 23 between the Philippines and New Zealand's defense departments, the two countries said in a joint statement on January 29.

"The first round of negotiations marked an important step in strengthening bilateral defense ties between the Philippines and New Zealand," the statement said.

The Status of Visiting Forces Agreement will provide the legal framework for both countries "to elevate their cooperative activities and conduct exercises in each other’s territories, deepening overall defense and military cooperation," it added.

Catherine McIntosh, New Zealand's ambassador to the Philippines, attended the Manila meeting, while other members of Wellington's delegation participated virtually.

From the Philippines' side, negotiators included officials from the Department of Defense, Justice and Foreign Affairs, as well as the Presidential Commission on Visiting Forces.

Last month, the Philippine Senate ratified the same defense agreement with Japan. The Southeast Asian country also has signed similar defense pacts with the United State and Australia and has begun talks with France.

Beijing claims almost the entire South China Sea, brushing aside competing claims from several Southeast Asian nations, including the Philippines, and an international ruling that its stance has no legal basis.

There have been frequent clashes or tense standoffs between Philippine and Chinese vessels in the strategic waterway.