Philippines, France sign Visiting Forces Agreement in Paris

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March 27, 2026 | 9:49am

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines and France signed a Visiting Forces Agreement on Thursday, March 26, making France the first European country to secure such a defense pact with Manila.

Defense Secretary Gibo Teodoro Jr. and French Armed Forces Minister Catherine Vautrin signed the agreement during a bilateral meeting at the École Militaire in Paris — Teodoro's first visit to France as defense chief.

The agreement, formally called the Status of Visiting Forces Agreement, provides the framework for Filipino and French military personnel to conduct joint activities and have greater cooperation in training, exercises and other operations.

Both officials reaffirmed their commitment to the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and the 2016 arbitral ruling on the South China Sea, the Department of National Defense (DND) said in a joint press release.

The two sides also discussed security issues across the Indo-Pacific, the Middle East and Europe and called for "the peaceful resolution of disputes and the strengthening of supply chain resilience in the context of crisis."

Teodoro and Vautrin pointed to a steady buildup in defense ties since the two countries signed a Letter of Intent in December 2023 to strengthen their bilateral defense ties. Since then, the Philippines and France have held regular dialogues, military delegation visits, educational exchanges, port calls and joint naval and disaster response training.

The Philippines also welcomed France's engagement with ASEAN and the ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting-Plus, particularly French participation in working groups on humanitarian assistance, disaster response and maritime security.

Sixth country, first European partner

France is the sixth country with which the Philippines has signed a visiting forces agreement, following the United States (1998), Australia (2007), Japan (2024), New Zealand (April 2025) and Canada (November 2025). Three of those deals — with Japan, New Zealand and Canada — were concluded under the Marcos administration and the France agreement now makes it four.

Negotiations for the French deal began in Paris in mid-2024. The two countries concluded formal negotiations in December 2025.

Teodoro's signing trip also marked the first time a Southeast Asian defense minister attended and spoke at the Paris Defence and Strategy Forum, where he delivered a keynote address.

The agreement matters because France is not a distant European player in the Indo-Pacific as it holds overseas territories across the region, including New Caledonia and French Polynesia, which are home to 1.6 million French citizens. Paris permanently stations about 7,000 military personnel across five commands in the Indo-Pacific.

Manila is also negotiating a similar agreement with the United Kingdom, which expressed its intent to forge a VFA with the Philippines in September 2025.