Japan formally handed over an air surveillance radar system to the Philippines on Wednesday, the first export of a complete defense product since its long-held arms trade ban was eased in 2014.
The system, which can detect approaching fighter jets and missiles, will help bolster the Southeast Asian country's defense amid China's growing aggressiveness in the South China Sea, according to Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro.
Wednesday's handover of the first of the four radar systems is based on Japan's defense equipment and technology transfer deal with the Philippines in 2020. Japan had agreed to deliver four radars.
"These (radar systems) are important because we will be able to see intrusions in our air space from as far as 300 nautical miles," Teodoro said at a ceremony held at a former U.S. military base, adding the Philippines can now "get a clearer picture" of any intrusions "not just in the West Philippine Sea but also in other parts" of the country.
The South China Sea is locally called the West Philippine Sea.
Teodoro said Manila is also keen to share the data collected from the radars with Tokyo and Washington.
He condemned China's "attempt to unilaterally recreate norms of international law" and said that should Manila "acquiesce," it would be detrimental to all stakeholders.
China and the Philippines have overlapping claims in the strategically important South China Sea, along with Malaysia, Brunei, Vietnam and Taiwan. China claims almost all of the South China Sea.
According to the Philippine Air Force, the radar's capabilities include collecting "near-real-time" information and early detection of threats and intrusions into the Philippines' exclusive economic zone.
The air force's chief, Stephen Parreno, said at the ceremony that the radar system is "crucial" to keep watch of the Philippine air space with greater accuracy and "to protect our sovereign territory."
Each radar unit, made by Mitsubishi Electric Corp., is equipped with a ballistic missile defense mode.
Manila expects to operationalize two more of the Japan-made fixed radar systems and a mobile radar system to be completed by 2026. None of the locations where they will be installed has been disclosed, with one possibly installed in a Northern Philippine province facing Taiwan.
