Philippines eyes Japan to build 5G network amid China’s dominance, cyber fears
- Japan is reportedly planning to help the Philippines build an open radio access network ahead of Manila’s 5G deployment
The offer is seen to be linked to a proposed agreement that Manila and Tokyo are exploring to permit troops on either side to enter each other’s territory for joint military exercises and enhanced defence cooperation, especially in maritime areas.
Japan’s Foreign Affairs Minister Yoko Kamikawa is reportedly set to discuss the 5G plan and the finalisation of the bilateral defence pact in the Philippines next month.
The construction of base stations for the open radio access network (RAN) in the Philippines could begin in the next few months ahead of the building 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.
Cyber technology was one of the areas of cooperation under a Manila-Tokyo-Washington trilateral agreement, Ona said.
