P1NAS, the broad citizens’ movement for national sovereignty, strongly condemns the signing of the Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) between the Philippines and Japan. This agreement, which would allow the deployment of Japanese forces on Philippine soil, is a dangerous step towards war and a grave threat to Philippine sovereignty.
“The RAA with Japan is not just a simple defense pact. It carries profound historical significance that cannot be ignored,” said P1NAS spokesperson Antonio Tinio. “This agreement would permit Japanese military forces to be stationed in the Philippines for the first time since World War II, reopening deep wounds from the brutal Japanese occupation. The Filipino people have not forgotten the atrocities committed during that dark period of our history, including the systematic use of comfort women, the Bataan Death March, and countless other war crimes.”
Tinio emphasized that the RAA is part of a broader US strategy to contain China and maintain its hegemony in Asia. “This agreement must be seen in the context of the ongoing US-led military build-up in the region. The US is pushing its allies, particularly Japan, towards massive militarization to serve as its proxies. We’ve already seen the US deploying an intermediate-range missile launcher in Northern Luzon, a type of weapon banned under the INF Treaty. It has deployed F-22 Raptor fighter jets and Reaper drones in Pampanga. Now, they’re paving the way for Japanese forces to enter our country as well.”
P1NAS warns that the RAA confirms the US intention to use the Philippines as a springboard for military action, involving not just Japan but also other states the US has historically relied on to support its wars of aggression. “The Marcos Jr. administration is allowing our country to become a forward operating base for US-led aggression,” Tinio stated. “Aside from the Visiting Forces Agreement with the US, a Status of Forces Agreement with Australia, and now the RAA with Japan, this administration has announced its intention negotiate similar agreements with New Zealand, Canada, and the UK. Meanwhile, Filipino youth will be used as cannon fodder in the event of war between the US and China. This is a betrayal of our national interests and a dangerous gamble with the lives of the Filipino people.”
The organization also pointed out how the US and Japan are exploiting the ongoing conflict between the Philippines and China in the West Philippine Sea to justify their military build-up. “While we stand firm in defending our sovereign rights in the West Philippine Sea, we must not allow this conflict to be used as a pretext for turning our country into a battleground for a US-China war for regional hegemony,” Tinio explained. “We stand for the defense of our sovereignty and sovereign rights. We refuse to let our country become the doormat of foreign troops.”
P1NAS calls on the Filipino people to oppose this dangerous agreement and calls on the Senate to deny its ratification. “We must learn from history and not allow our country to once again become a staging ground for foreign military forces,” Tinio concluded. “Our sovereignty and the lives of our people are not bargaining chips in the US’s game of global dominance.”
The organization urges all patriotic Filipinos to join in opposing the RAA and to stand united in defending Philippine sovereignty against all forms of foreign military presence and intervention.
