Manila, June 6 -- Japan's Diet on Friday approved a significant defense agreement permitting Japanese forces' deployment to the Philippines for joint military exercises with Filipino troops.

"We welcome today's approval of the Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) between the Philippines and Japan by the House of Councillors, which completes the approval process in the Japanese Diet," Philippine Ambassador to Japan Mylene Garcia-Albano said in a statement.

The RAA facilitates greater military cooperation between the two nations by streamlining procedures for the deployment of forces in each other's territories for joint training and disaster response operations.

The agreement is key to growing the countries' strategic partnership amid risi...