MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi traveled to the Philippines on Tuesday to witness an international combat drill and conduct talks with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. intended to broaden defense ties between the nations, officials said. Koizumi’s meeting in the capital Manila with Marcos and Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. may include discussion of a possible transfer of used Japanese destroyers to the Philippines. The Philippines and Japan, both treaty allies of the United States, signed a pact in 2024 allowing their forces to stage large-scale combat drills. The Reciprocal Access Agreement paved the way for Japan to deploy 1,400 military personnel to become regular participants in the exercises called Balikatan. U.S., Filipino and other allied forces annually take part in Balikatan, the Tagalog word for shoulder-to-shoulder, to brace for security contingencies and deter China’s increasing assertiveness in the region.…