TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The US and its allies are reinforcing defenses along the First Island Chain, the National Security Bureau (NSB) said on Monday.

Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Australia, and New Zealand have signed defense cooperation agreements with Japan and the Philippines and expanded joint exercises and patrols to bolster collective deterrence in the region, the NSB said in a report, per CNA. Additionally, the US, Japan, and the Philippines are strengthening coordination to deploy an anti-ship missile strike network along the First Island Chain, it said.

The NSB said the US military has forward-deployed Typhon intermediate-range missiles to Yamaguchi Prefecture in Japan and Zambales Province in the Philippines, while moving NMESIS anti-ship missile systems forward to Okinawa, Miyako Island, Ishigaki Island, and Batan Island in the Philippines. Japan is also planning to deploy its hypervelocity gliding projectiles in Kyushu and Hokkaido, it added, according to CNA.

Meanwhile, the Philippines has deployed BrahMos anti-ship missiles in western Luzon and Palawan Province, the NSB said. These deployments have significantly boosted the US and its allies’ ability to control and deny access to key maritime areas along the First Island Chain, it said.

The NSB pointed out that since January, 19 countries and alliances such as NATO and the EU have repeatedly and publicly emphasized the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.

The EU and Germany separately stated in August and October, respectively, that the Taiwan Strait is subject to the UN Charter’s prohibition on the use of force for the first time.

The NSB emphasized that security in the Taiwan Strait is vital to prosperity and stability in the Indo-Pacific and beyond. Democratic allies are strengthening security deployments in the Indo-Pacific and using diplomatic statements to help build a defensive architecture along the First Island Chain to counter China’s military expansion, it said.