Japan offers Indonesia and the Philippines lethal muscle to counter China

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Frigate and submarine sales are reportedly on the cards as Tokyo’s defence minister tours the region

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Maria SiowPublished: 12:29pm, 5 May 2026Japan’s defence minister is touring Southeast Asia this week with what analysts describe as a clear, if diplomatically understated, mission: turning Indonesia and the Philippines into harder targets for Chinese maritime ambition.Shinjiro Koizumi landed in Jakarta on Monday to sign a defence cooperation pact with his Indonesian counterpart Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, coming hot on the heels of Tokyo’s landmark decision to lift a decades-old ban on the export of lethal weapons last month.He heads next to the Philippines, where Japanese forces are currently training alongside US troops in the annual Balikatan military exercise.Advertisement

Japan’s policy reversal on arms exports now permits weapons transfers to 17 defence partners, in a substantial break from its post-World War II pacifist doctrine.

Empowering Southeast Asian states will raise their diplomatic bargaining power vis-a-vis China

Observers say Koizumi’s itinerary leaves little ambiguity about whom the shift is designed to deter.

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