Amid Manila’s dispute with Beijing over the South China Sea, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said Tuesday that India firmly supports the Philippines in upholding its national sovereignty and wants to explore new areas of cooperation, including in defence and security. At a joint press conference in Manila after bilateral talks with Philippines Foreign Secretary Enrique Manalo, Jaishankar said: “I take this opportunity to firmly reiterate India’s support to the Philippines for upholding its national sovereignty.” As the world changes, it is essential that countries like India and the Philippines cooperate more closely to shape the emerging order, he said. Every country has the right to uphold and enforce its national sovereignty, he said in response to a question. “That is something that we have also discussed,” he said. On India’s plans to expand the defence cooperation with the Philippines, Jaishankar said: “You need to look at that cooperation on its own merits. It is not necessarily linked to a particular situation. But it’s natural today that two countries whose trust and comfort is growing …