Philippines’ Duterte seen making Japan trip in October

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s first official visit to Japan is in the works for next month, it was revealed Wednesday, setting the stage for stronger cooperation on maritime security. Philippine and Japanese government sources confirm that an October visit is under discussion. Talks with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe are on the agenda, with tensions in the South China Sea likely to take center stage. The two sides are expected to affirm the importance of a July ruling by an international arbitral tribunal denying China’s sweeping claims over the sea and urge Beijing to comply with the judgment. (Image/Reproduction: Nikkei) Meeting with Duterte in Laos earlier this month, Abe pledged to supply the Philippines with two large patrol vessels financed through yen loans. The Philippine government reports that the president is set to visit Vietnam, another South China Sea country locked in territorial squabbles with China, by the end of the...