PRESIDENT Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. left for Cambodia on Wednesday afternoon to participate in the 40th and 41st ASEAN Summits and Related Summits.
Marcos underscored that his attendance and participation in the summits, scheduled from November 10 to 13, will promote and protect the country’s interests in ASEAN.
“I have spoken often about the importance that I put to the partnerships that we make as we go forward and start to live the future of the new global economy and I think this is going to be a very very good opportunity for us to forge new partnerships and to strengthen those that have already existed for very long time,” Marcos said in his speech before leaving for Phnom Penh.
“We will emphasize regional cooperation on maritime security, climate change, food security, health cooperation, and economy recovery amongst others,” Marcos added.
Further, he said the ASEAN would be an instrument to address regional issues such as the COVID-19 pandemic, the situation in Myanmar, developments in the South China Sea and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“We will also be having bilateral meetings with some of my counterparts in ASEAN and ASEAN’s dialogue partners. I will seek further cooperation in key priorities of my administration as well as how to explore what we can do to come together to address the most pressing issues of the region,” he said.
According to the President, he would also promote the Philippines not just as an investment and tourism center but a “global partner” for other ASEAN member states.
