The Philippines and Vietnam will sign a defence cooperation agreement the office of Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said, a significant step by two countries that have long opposed China’s actions in the South China Sea. Vietnamese Defence Minister Phan Van Giang was in Manila on Friday to hold talks with his Philippine counterpart, Gilberto Teodoro, and he paid a courtesy call earlier in the day on Marcos. “We now talk about defence cooperation, security cooperation, maritime cooperation, and certainly, the area of trade as well,” Marcos was quoted as saying in a statement that did not specify details of the defence agreement.
