Flashpoints

Philippines’ Duterte First Head of State to Visit Japan’s Largest Warship

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Flashpoints

Philippines’ Duterte First Head of State to Visit Japan’s Largest Warship

The Philippine president purportedly expressed his willingness to deepen defense cooperation with Japan while onboard.

Philippines’ Duterte First Head of State to Visit Japan’s Largest Warship
Credit: PIA Gitnang Luzon via Facebook

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte became the first head of state to tour Japan’s largest warship, the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) helicopter carrier JS Izumo, the lead vessel of the new 27,000-ton Izumo-class, in Subic Bay, located on the west coast of the island of Luzon in the Philippines, on June 4.

The JS Izumo and the guided-missile and antisubmarine warfare (ASW) Takanami-class destroyer JS Sazanami are currently in the Philippines for a four-day goodwill visit following their participation in this year’s U.S.-led Pacific Partnership (PP17) mission, the largest annual multilateral humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HA/DR) preparedness exercise conducted in the Asia-Pacific region.

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