TOKYO

 Vietnam has agreed to let Japanese Maritime Self-Defence Force vessels make port calls at a strategically important naval base in the South China Sea.

Kyodo News reported that Japanese and Vietnamese defense ministers agreed Friday that the base in Cam Ranh Bay -- roughly 460 kilometers (285 miles) from the disputed Spratly Islands -- would welcome Japan's boats.

The agreement comes three days after Japan sent two boats to Vietnam to be used as patrol vessels amid reported demonstrations of force by China in the Sea.

China, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan, and the Philippines have laid claims to areas of the Spratly archipelago.

Japan will reportedly assist Vietnam with additional vessels under a separate agreement signed Sept. 2014.