GOVPH

Opening Statement of Secretary for Foreign Affairs Enrique A. Manalo on the PH-US 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue Joint Press Conference

MANILA 30 July 2024 — Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen. I wish to begin by thanking Secretary Teodoro for hosting the 4th Philippines-US 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue here in Camp Aguinaldo. We are pleased to welcome Secretary Blinken and Secretary Austin back to Manila.

The alliance of our two countries is historic, shaped by our adherence to democracy, social justice and rule of law. For over seven decades we have demonstrated its dynamism as we jointly respond to common challenges. Our cooperation significantly contributed to the preservation of peace and security and bringing about opportunities for our mutual growth and prosperity.

The Philippines values the United States’ ironclad commitment to the alliance and remains steadfast to the positive trajectory of our bilateral relations on a range of initiatives. From the launch of the Luzon Economic Corridor and the conduct of Balikatan exercises both in April 2024, our alliance is robust, multifaceted and serves the greater regional interests. These are just two of the significant headways we have accomplished in the last 24 months that deliver on our alliance commitments in the broadest sense and there is more work to be done and we will continue to forge ahead.

Our meeting today provided us an opportunity to assess progress on our bilateral cooperation since the last 2+2 Dialogue in Washington, D.C. We had very productive discussions on areas such as trade and economic cooperation, infrastructure, security cooperation. The alliance is broad-based and supports efforts towards the achievement of Philippine development goals.

We will be issuing shortly a Joint Statement that outlines the details of our discussions and commitments.

Let me speak briefly to the discussion on fostering economic development and resilience. 

We reviewed what has happened over the past year and were gratified at the depth and breadth of the economic engagement of our two countries. From the first-ever Presidential Trade and Investment Mission led by Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, to the co-hosting of the Indo-Pacific Business Forum here in Manila, and to the series of dialogues dealing with aviation, science and energy, technology and cyber, we have done much, and accomplished much equally, in charting a path towards attaining our objectives of stable, sustainable, and secure economic growth.

We are committed to following through on on-going cooperation with the Millennium Challenge Corporation, and the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF), and the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment. In this regard, we look towards identifying, and implementing, projects for investment in the Luzon Economic Corridor.

Finally, on people-to-people ties, we lauded the work of the Philippine Fulbright Commission and the USAID in harnessing educational cooperation and development assistance. We are also excited about the on-going work with the Millennium Challenge Corporation on a threshold program.

Let me end by emphasizing that the Philippines will continue to uphold and protect the rules-based international order in the midst of a regional landscape that is significantly under stress. In our discussions, I have conveyed that the situation in the West Philippine Sea and the South China Sea, and that remains a priority to our government. In line with our treaty obligations, we discussed recent developments and committed to continue our work together in upholding Philippine sovereignty, sovereign rights, and jurisdiction.

I would like to thank again my partner, Secretary Teodoro of the DND, and our counterparts and friends, Secretaries Blinken and Austin, for the candid, constructive, and comprehensive discussions we had today on this historic, first ever PH-US 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue in Manila. I truly believe our discussions, and more importantly our firm commitment to Philippine-U.S. relations, undeniably demonstrates that our alliance is iron-clad.

Thank you. END