Philippines close to visiting forces deal with Canada

Manila already has similar visiting forces agreements with the United States and Japan, and is also in talks with France and New Zealand in the face of China's growing assertion of claims to the South China Sea.

"We are in the final stages of negotiating the agreement which will enable us to have deeper cooperation and more substantive participation in training to build capacity," Canada's ambassador to Manila, David Hartman, said in a statement to AFP.

"We are hopeful that the signing and ratification of the agreement by both governments can be expected before the end of 2025," he added.

Canadian officials held discussions last month with counterparts from the Philippine defence and foreign departments, he said.

Hartman said the agreement would allow for future participation by Canadian troops in large-scale joint military exercises held every year between the Philippines and the United States.

The Philippine foreign office did not immediately reply to a request for comment by AFP.

The Canadian navy has taken part in recent months in several patrols in the South China Sea with the US, Australia, the Philippines and Japan to assert freedom of navigation and flights in a strategic waterway claimed almost in whole by Beijing.