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Courtesy: Philippine Air Force
A Japanese Air Self-Defense Force plane will transport drinking water in the Philippines later this week to help those affected by the recent massive earthquake in the island province of Cebu, Defense Minister Gen Nakatani said Tuesday.
The humanitarian assistance and a disaster relief training conducted by the Japanese Self-Defense Forces and the Philippine military starting the same day around Cebu are the first activities under an agreement that facilitates visits of the two nations’ forces for joint exercises and disaster response.
The Reciprocal Access Agreement took effect last month and is the first for Japan with a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
The water will be transported by a KC-130 tanker plane from an air base on Leyte island to an airport near Cebu, scheduled for Thursday, is based on a request made by the country, Nakatani said, following the magnitude 6.9 quake on Sept. 30 that left about 72 people dead and hundreds injured.
The Department of National Defense (DND), in a separate announcement on Tuesday, expressed full support for the conduct of Doshin-Bayanihan 5-25, the first joint activity under the Philippines–Japan Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA), which took effect on September 11, 2025.
The exercise, which runs from October 7 to 11 at Brigadier General Benito N. Ebuen Air Base in Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu, brings together personnel from the Philippine Air Force and Japan Air Self-Defense Force for combined humanitarian assistance and disaster response training.
The Philippine Air Force said the exercise will focus on interoperability in airlift mobility, medical response, and night vision goggle flight training as well as humanitarian assistance and disaster response.
Defense officials also thanked the Japanese government for providing humanitarian aid to communities affected by the recent earthquake in Cebu. The assistance coincides with the ongoing Doshin-Bayanihan 5-25 activities.
The DND said the implementation of the RAA is a major step in strengthening defense ties between the Philippines and Japan, facilitating closer operational cooperation and advancing both countries’ shared goals of regional stability, security, and resilience.
“With the RAA in place, both activities underscore the RAA’s pivotal role in facilitating enhanced bilateral defense collaboration, ensuring interoperability, and advancing both countries’ shared commitment to regional resilience, security, and stability,” the DND said. — Kyodo News & Rex Espiritu
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