PH, France near visiting forces deal – AFP Chief

Metro Manila, Philippines –  The Philippines and France are moving closer to finalizing a Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) as both nations seek to expand defense cooperation amid evolving security challenges, the Armed Forces of the Philippines chief said Tuesday.

AFP Chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. said discussions on the agreement are advancing, with Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. currently in France to push negotiations forward.

“Probably very close. The Secretary of National Defense is in France right now… and they’re going to try to push forward the VFA with France,” Brawner said in an ambush interview during a Stratbase forum in Makati City.

“We’re both eager. Both countries are eager. It’s just the process that we have to go through,” he added.

The Department of National Defense said Manila and Paris have already concluded formal negotiations for a Status of Visiting Forces Agreement (SOVFA), which would serve as the legal framework governing the presence and activities of Filipino and French troops in each other’s territories.

“The two countries in December last year concluded formal negotiations for a Status of Visiting Forces Agreement (SOVFA), the Philippines’ first with a European partner,” the DND said.

Once in effect, the agreement would allow expanded military training, joint exercises and other forms of defense engagement between the two countries.

French officials, meanwhile, said ties between Manila and Paris are gaining momentum across multiple sectors, including defense, trade and Indo-Pacific cooperation.

“The relationship between France and the Philippines is strong… in fields that are important for both of our countries,” French Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson Pascal Confavreux said in Paris in an interview with NewsWatch Plus last year.

Confavreux cited a series of high-level exchanges between the two countries — involving defense and trade officials — as part of France’s broader push to strengthen ties under its Indo-Pacific strategy.

“There is a very good dynamic of high-level diplomatic visits between our two countries… it is part and parcel of our Indo-Pacific strategy in the region,” he said.

Following a directive from President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the Philippines and France launched VFA negotiations, building on previous high-level defense dialogues.

French Ambassador Marie Fontanel earlier said a draft of the agreement had already been completed, while French Armed Forces Minister Sébastien Lecornu visited Manila in 2023, where both sides signed a letter of intent to deepen defense cooperation.

The country has similar agreements with the United States and Australia, while a separate deal with New Zealand was signed in 2025. A reciprocal access agreement with Japan also recently took effect.