GOVPH

The Secretary for Foreign Affairs' Remarks

On the Occasion of the Year-End Reception for the Diplomatic Corps

04 November 2024

Makati Diamond Residences

His Excellency Archbishop Charles John Brown III, Apostolic Nuncio and Dean of the Diplomatic Corps,

Excellencies, Members of the Diplomatic Corps,

Colleagues in the Department of Foreign Affairs,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good evening.

Excellencies:

At the outset, may I request a moment of silence on this National Day of Mourning for the victims of Typhoon Kristine.

I am pleased to welcome you al to our Year-End Reception. We have all worked together closely over the last year to enhance relations between the Philippines and the countries you represent.

Three years into the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the Philippines' diplomatic horizons have further broadened through our partnerships with your countries. This forward-looking and inclusive approach is guided by an independent foreign policy that is always ready to cooperate in pursuit of mutually-beneficial outcomes. For the Department, this year has been very productive, diplomatically speaking.

We could not have carried these out without your cooperation and support.

The Department began the year with engagements in Africa. I participated in the 19th NAM Summit in Kampala, Uganda, and held 20 bilateral meetings with 9 African partners. In May, we co-organized Africa Day, in cooperation with the six Resident Embassies from Africa to celebrate the richness and diversity of African culture, food, and arts.

In the succeeding months, we conducted high-level engagements with countries, such as Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Mongolia and Ukraine.

In the first Philippines-Japan-U.S. Trilateral Summit among President Marcos Jr., President Joe Biden, and Prime Minister Kishida Fumio held in April, the leaders unveiled their joint vision for the future, underscoring the importance of collective responsibility in advancing an open, inclusive, resilient and prosperous region.

The State Visit of President Yoon Suk Yeol last month was the first bilateral visit to the Philippines of a Korean President since 2011, coinciding with the 75th anniversary of the establishment of our diplomatic relations with the Republic of Korea. During the visit, the leaders issued a Joint Declaration, announcing the elevation of our relations to a Strategic Partnership.

The Philippines hosted, for the first time, the Philippines-United States 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue which enhanced our countries' defense, security and economic cooperation.

We also convened the Philippines-Japan 2+2 Ministerial Meeting in Manila, where we reiterated our commitment to our strategic partnership, and signed the bilateral Reciprocal Access Agreement.

As of October this year, I have had 104 bilateral meetings with my counterparts, from countries in the Indo-Pacific, Middle East, the Americas, Europe, and Africa. These engagements have allowed us to enhance cooperation on regional and international issues, and help promote our national concerns.

This includes my official visits to Greece and Cyprus, the first such visits by a Philippine Foreign Minister. I also welcomed to Manila my counterparts from Brazil, the Holy See, Hungary, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Singapore, New Zealand, the United Arab Emirates, the United States, India, Germany, Malaysia, Thailand and Japan.

We are expanding our network of cooperation by also reaching out more to our partners in the Pacific and South America. Strengthening South-South Cooperation remains high on our foreign policy agenda, and we are committed to putting the Pacific into the "Indo-Pacific".

As such, we actively participated as a Dialogue Partner in the 53d Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting in August. The Philippines, in collaboration with the World Health Organization and the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat, will convene later this month a conference to discuss and launch the Philippines-Pacific Partnership for Sustainable Health Resources for Health Security.

The opening this year of our resident Embassies in Bogota, Bucharest, Dublin, and Helsinki forms a crucial part of our efforts to expand our diplomatic reach. We hope to establish more resident Embassies and Consulates General in the near future, thus bolstering our ability to promote Philippine interests and serve overseas Filipinos more effectively.

Excellencies:

The promotion and protection of the rights of Filipinos overseas is a major priority of the Department. And the on-going conflicts in the Middle East and other areas makes our work more urgent and critical. In coordination with the Department of Migrant Workers, we have repatriated approximately 4000 Filipinos from conflict areas since the beginning of 2023. In this regard, I would like to express our Government's sincerest thanks to our partners, including Canada, Turkiye, Qatar, Thailand, Israel and the United States, for their assistance in enabling us to safely repatriate our nationals from the affected areas. At the same time, I reiterate our deep concern over the humanitarian consequences and suffering in Gaza, Ukraine, Sudan, Myanmar and other conflict areas.

Another important aspect of our assistance to overseas Filipinos is to streamline services that improve mobility for those who are or wish to travel overseas. This has been enhanced through the passage of the new Philippine Passport Act and the implementation of the Philippine Apostille. The expansion of the e-Visa service underscores our commitment to fostering deeper ties and people-to-people links with our partners.

Excellencies,

ASEAN is the cornerstone of our foreign policy.

This commitment is evident from the President's participation at the recent 44th and 45th ASEAN Summits and Related Summits, where he called for the acceleration of cooperation on the most pressing global issues, including climate action, sustainable agriculture and food security, supply chain connectivity, renewable energy, and the digital and green economy. He also urged greater effort to secure ASEAN's path to become the world's fourth largest economy by 2030.

ASEAN Centrality is key to the regional security architecture which is based on the sovereign equality of states, the rule of law and a rules-based order, and a people- centered community.

Among our key ASEAN-related initiatives in 2024 was our hosting of the 5th iteration of the ASEAN Dialogue on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

The Philippines also hosted the 3rd Commanders' Meeting of the ASEAN Coast Guards Forum last June and we look forward to convening the ASEAN Armies Annual Meet in Clark this month.

We are now preparing to assume the ASEAN Chairmanship in 2026. We count on your support during our Chairmanship.

Excellencies:

The bedrock of our foreign policy is the strengthening of an open, inclusive, and rules-based order, grounded on the sovereign equality of states and governed by international law.

As President Marcos Jr. has clearly enunciated on a number of occasions, a rules-based order provides a credible legal regime that guarantees just and equitable access to the global commons, especially in the oceans. The predictability and stability it engenders provides an enabling environment for nations, large and small, intent on pursuing their legitimate interests.

As part of our commitment to enhancing the rules-based order, especially in the maritime space, we submitted information to the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf in June to register our entitlement to an extended continental shelf in the West Palawan Region in the West Philippine Sea. We signed the Agreement on the Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction.

We continue to strengthen maritime cooperation with our partners. In 2024 we convened maritime dialogues with the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, the Republic of Korea, Japan, and the European Union. Next year, we are scheduled to meet with Vietnam, Indonesia, and India.

We choose the path of diplomacy and the rule of law in addressing national security challenges. We are relentless in protecting our sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdictions in the South China Sea in accordance with international law and through peaceful and diplomatic means. As President Marcos Jr. affirmed in his State of the Nation Address, "we will assert our rights and interests in the same fair and pacific way that we have always done... We continuously try to find ways to de-escalate tensions in contested areas with our counterparts, without compromising our position and our principles."

We also remain focused on our multilateral engagements, especially within the United Nations system. Global problems require global solutions, and the Philippines firmly believes that the UN remains the single most viable platform for collective action to address common challenges, such as climate risk reduction, sustainable development, migration, peace and security, among others.

The Philippines was honored to have been selected as host country of the Board of the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage last July. On behalf of the Philippine Government, I wish to express our sincere gratitude to your respective Governments' invaluable support for our bid to host the headquarters of the Board and I am pleased to announce that we will host the 4th meeting of the Board in December - the first meeting we are convening as the Board's host country.

No stranger to natural disasters, the Philippines shall continue our active role in supporting global and regional efforts to address the adverse effects of climate change.

Last month, we successfully hosted the Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction, and identified best practices to strengthen disaster risk resilience in the world's most disaster-prone region.

Let me also take this opportunity to thank all the Governments which generously provided valuable assistance to the Philippines when we were affected by natural disasters in the past year, including most recently, typhoon Kristine.

Excellencies:

In July 2024, the UN Human Rights Council unanimously adopted the Philippine- initiated resolution calling for the protection and promotion of the human rights of seafarers. This resolution is a first of its kind. As a seafaring nation with a considerable global diaspora, the Philippines will continue playing an active role in efforts to protect and promote the rights and well-being of seafarers and migrants worldwide.

Last week, the Philippines hosted the successful International Conference on Women, Peace and Security wherein the "Pasay Declaration on Women, Peace, and Security", was adopted. The Declaration provides a clear framework for advancing implementation of the WPS agenda established by UN Security Council Resolution 1325.

Excellencies:

These initiatives affirm the Philippines' commitment to search for constructive solutions to regional and global issues - from human rights, health and humanitarian action to development, disarmament, disaster and climate risk reduction, peacemaking to peacekeeping and peace-building. This is in line with our proven track record of multilateral diplomacy that has consistently pursued peace, adherence to a rules based order, the sovereign equality of states, and the rights and dignity of all persons.

The Philippines, is a trusted partner, an innovative pathfinder, and a committed

peacemaker.

As such, I have the honor to reiterate our request for your countries' valuable support for our bid for a non-permanent seat in the UN Security Council for the term 2027 to 2028.

Excellencies,

This evening also serves as a temporary farewell to 2330 Roxas Boulevard - the iconic building that has been the home of the Department of Foreign Affairs for over 3 decades. Before the year ends, we hope to have completed our move to a temporary headquarters. We will retrofit our iconic building to make it better equipped to house the Philippine Foreign Service.

For the next few years, including through our Chairship of ASEAN in 2026, we will conduct our diplomatic and consular work in an interim home.

Finally, I would like to reiterate my sincere thanks to all of you for your continued support and partnership.

On this note, may I invite everyone to join me in a toast:

To Your Excellencies' good health,

To peace and prosperity for our Peoples,

And to our enduring friendship.

Mabuhay!