Philippines to Convene Official Meetings with Viet Nam and Lao PDR To Strengthen Bilateral Cooperation

Pasay 31 July 2023 - Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique A. Manalo will lead a delegation to Viet Nam and Lao PDR from 31 July to 05 August 2023 to review current relations and explore ways to strengthen bilateral ties.

Secretary Manalo will travel to Hanoi from 31 July to 03 August 2023 for the 10th Philippines - Viet Nam Joint Commission on Bilateral Cooperation (JCBC) where the two countries are set to discuss areas of cooperation such as defense, maritime, economic, and people-to-people ties. Secretary Manalo is also slated to speak at the Diplomatic Academy of Viet Nam with the theme, “Philippines-Vietnam Strategic Partnership in the Age of Change.”

The Secretary will then travel to Vientiane for the 2nd Philippines-Lao PDR JCBC on 03 - 05 August 2023, where he will take stock of the current Philippines-Lao PDR relations and explore ways to expand cooperation. The Secretary will also engage with the diplomatic community through his talk at the Institute of Foreign Affairs, entitled “Closer Together: People at the Center of Philippines-Laos Relations.”

The JCBC is the primary mechanism that the Philippines has with both Viet Nam and Lao PDR that provides an opportunity to comprehensively discuss bilateral relations, as well as various regional and global issues. END