MILITARY leaders from the United States, Japan, Australia, and the Philippines have agreed to hold larger and more complex exercises to improve interoperability to counter threats, the Philippine Army said yesterday.

Army chief Lt. Gen. Roy Galido, US Army Pacific commander Gen. Charles Flynn, Australian Army chief Lt. Gen. Simon Stuart, Japan Ground Self-Defense Force chief Gen. Yasunori Morishita and US Marines III Marine Expeditionary Force Commander Lt. Gen. Roger Turner reached the agreement during a meeting in Melbourne, Australia on September 13.

“The military leaders agreed to enhance cooperation by conducting larger and more complex multilateral training exercises in the coming years,” said Army spokesman Col. Louie Dema-ala.

Dema-ala said the military leaders also “committed to regular meetings to refine and innovate joint deterrence strategies amid the fast-changing regional and global security landscape.” He did not provide additional details of the meeting.

The US Army Pacific, in a statement, said the military leaders have “witnessed” China’s “aggressive actions” in the West Philippine Sea and North Korea’s “uptick in missile testing and launches.”

“The leaders expressed their shared concerns about the deteriorating security environment but assessed that next year provides multiple opportunities to follow a more collaborative, or integrated, approach to deterrence,” it added.

The Philippines has a Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) with US and a Status of Visiting Forces Agreement with Australia. These agreements provide legal framework to the conduct of military exercises.

The Philippines and Japan signed last July a Reciprocal Access Agreement, similar to the VFA and SOFVA, but the Philippines still needs the concurrence of the Senate before the agreement can be put into force.

Pending the Senate concurrence, military exercises between Filipino and Japanese forces are limited to humanitarian assistance and disaster response activities.

The US Army Pacific, in a statement, said the military leaders “agreed upon new measures for integrating deterrence activities among regional land forces.”

“These largely consist of adjusting the timing and increasing the scale and complexity of army-to-army exercises, evolving some once bilateral frameworks to now welcome more multilateral involvement among the core grouping,” it added.

It quoted Flynn as saying: “This is the deepest level of integration among U.S. regional allies I have ever seen not only during my tenure as the commanding general but over the course of my entire career.”

It said the meeting occurred in the wake of “several favorable policy developments which have created the political conditions for strengthening multilateral cooperation.”

German and Philippine navy officials discussed training opportunities between the two navies.

Visiting Rear Adm. Axel Schulz, commander of the German Navy’s Flotilla 2, visited the Navy headquarters in Manila last Monday.

Schulz was welcomed by Rear Adm. Renato David, commander of the Navy’s Philippine Fleet.

“We are glad that you are here. It is a testament to your commitment to an open Indo-Pacific. It is our pleasure to welcome you,” said David of the Schulz and members of his delegation.

Schulz emphasized the need to “stand shoulder to shoulder with our friends, allies, and partners in the Indo-Pacific region, especially with the Philippines.”

“We are very keen to support you in terms of training. I always see that as an exchange of experience, and I’m sure that we can learn a lot from the Philippine Navy as well,” said Schulz.

Navy spokesman Cdr. John Percie Alcos said Schulz and David, during the meeting, discussed future engagements, modernization efforts, and training opportunities between the Philippine and German naval forces.”

Alcos also said Schulz’ visit “marks another step toward enhancing defense cooperation and stronger bilateral relations, especially in addressing common maritime challenges and advancing mutual defense capabilities.”