U.S., Japan, Australia and Philippines Agree to Set Up a Combined Coordination Center in the Philippines; Manila Says the Mechanism Is Already Running
Australia's Department of Defence published a joint statement by four defense ministers on November 10: the defense chiefs of the United States, Japan, Australia and the Philippines met in Cebu, Philippines, on October 28 and committed to establishing a Combined Coordination Center (CCC) in the Philippines. Philippine Secretary of National Defense Gilberto Teodoro Jr. told reporters in Cebu on November 11 that the coordination mechanism behind the planned center is already operating, while the locations of its facilities have yet to be agreed and cannot yet be disclosed.
The four ministers — U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Richard Marles, Japanese Minister of Defense Shinjiro Koizumi and Teodoro — met on the sidelines of the ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting-Plus hosted by the Philippines. Their statement said the four countries would bolster deterrence and expand interoperability: besides establishing the center, they committed to synchronizing defense investments to support the Philippines in defending its archipelago, strengthening ministerial and senior policy-level consultations, and expanding the scope, complexity and frequency of combined exercises and cooperative activities. Recent progress they cited included the Pacific Chiefs of Defense Cooperation Council Terms of Reference signed in Singapore on May 29 and the Balikatan and Keen Sword exercises and regular maritime cooperative activities.
Teodoro said the mechanism will focus on maritime domain awareness, coordination, consolidation of information and improving interoperability among the four armed forces. Asked about sites, he said locations could be disclosed once the parties agree. Neither the joint statement nor his remarks gave the center's organizational structure, a formal establishment timeline or a detailed list of functions.
The arrangement moves the four countries' defense cooperation from exercises and statements toward a standing coordination mechanism. Hegseth proposed a U.S.-ASEAN defense cooperation framework in Cebu on October 28; the four ministers' coordination center became public with the joint statement more than ten days later, with the mechanism running ahead of any agreed site.
（Source: Australian Department of Defence）
Source: Australian Department of Defence
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：东盟防长扩大会宿务会议期间，美国战争部长赫格塞思与一名军官握手。照片：美国国防部，公共领域，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth shakes hands with an officer during the ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting-Plus in Cebu. U.S. Department of Defense, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
