Japan’s attempt to counter Chinese fifth-generation (5G) infrastructure in the region by assisting the Philippines in building its 5G network is viewed as a positive development by analysts. However, they remain skeptical about its potential to reduce the dominance of Chinese technology in the country. This offer is believed to be connected to a proposed agreement between Manila and Tokyo, which aims to allow their troops to enter each other’s territories for joint military exercises and to strengthen defense cooperation, particularly in maritime areas.
Japan’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Yoko Kamikawa, is reportedly scheduled to discuss the 5G plan and finalize the bilateral defense pact in the Philippines next month. The construction of base stations for the open radio access network (RAN) in the Philippines is expected to commence in the coming months, paving the way for the development of a 5G network.
“The downside that I’m seeing here is the cost. Chinese 5G technologies are renowned for their low cost and efficiency in addition to the current Chinese telecoms footprint in the country. So the entry barrier for Japan is significant”, Sherwin Ona, an associate professor of political science at De La Salle University and a visiting fellow at the Institute for National Defence and Security Research in Taiwan, told This Week in Asia.
According to Ona, cyber technology was a key area of cooperation in the Manila-Tokyo-Washington trilateral agreement. He noted that Japan's initiatives to enhance the Philippines' cyber capabilities further solidified its reputation as a dependable partner following its assistance in modernizing the Philippine coast guard and military. Given their robust diplomatic and economic ties, Japan’s offer to share technical expertise in the 5G sector was unsurprising, stated Allan Cabanlong, a former senior official responsible for cybersecurity at the Philippines’ Department of Information and Communications Technology.
“Japan and the Philippines have collaborated in 3G and 4G already. The collaboration on the 5G network is not something new and is a normal technical cooperation between the two countries”, Cabanlong told This Week in Asia.