Manila: The fifth meeting of the India-Philippines Joint Defence Cooperation Committee (JDCC) convened in Manila on September 11. During the meeting, Indian and Philippine defence officials engaged in wide-ranging discussions, spanning both bilateral and multilateral issues.

The meeting was co-chaired by Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane and his counterpart Senior Undersecretary, Ministry of National Defence of Philippines Irineo Cruz Espino.

The co-chairs reviewed the outcomes of the third Service-to-Service interactions held on September 10 and expressed happiness at the overall enhancement in bilateral defence cooperation across all sectors, the Ministry of Defence said in a press release.

Aramane appreciated the Self-Reliance Defence Posture Act of the Philippines government for modernising its Armed Forces. He highlighted that India has also laid out a similar vision for 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat'. Under this vision, the Indian defence industry is continuously enhancing its manufacturing capabilities and is exporting equipment to the world, he added.

Aramane also invited the Philippines to partner with the Indian defence industry in the co-development and co-production of equipment. The Philippines also invited investments in long-term equity partnership towards promoting assured supply chains. It acknowledged and appreciated India's functioning and proven template of defence industry indigenisation, the release said.

Both the sides affirmed the commitment to support each other to achieve the goal of self-reliance in defence production. They appreciated the operationalisation of White Shipping Information Exchange and the opening of the defence wing at Embassy of India, Manila, in the near future.

While welcoming the Philippines as a coordinating country for India in ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting Plus, the Defence Secretary discussed ways and means to strengthen cooperation in multilateral forums. India and the Philippines have a vigorous and multifaceted relationship which has expanded into several strategic areas, including defence and security, the release added.

During the visit, the Defence Secretary also called on Secretary of National Defence, Philippines (Defence Minister of Philippines) Gilbert Eduardo Gerardo Cojuangco Teodoro Jr. and conveyed the greetings of Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh. Earlier, he was received with a full Guard of Honour at the headquarters of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

The JDCC construct has been established under the ambit of the Memorandum of Understanding on defence cooperation between India and the Philippines signed in 2006. In the 75th year of diplomatic relations and 10 years of Act East policy, the co-chairmanship of JDCC is upgraded to Secretary-level.

Notably, the India-Philippines Joint Defence Cooperation Committee (JDCC) construct was established under the ambit of the Memorandum of Understanding on defence cooperation signed between the two countries in 2006.

Relations between the two nations have been friendly with shared values and commonalities, like vibrant democratic polity, pluralistic society, rule of law, an independent judiciary and free press, and the widespread use of the English language.

(With Inputs From Agencies)