17 December 2015 – Secretary Albert F. del Rosario met with his counterpart, His Excellency Hernani Coelho Da Silva, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste on December 17. The visit reaffirmed the strong partnership between the Philippines and Timor-Leste, which was established in May 2002.
The two Ministers discussed enhancing cooperation in the areas of defense, economic relations, education, health, and technical/capacity building, among others. They also discussed the strong people-to-people linkages between the two countries. They likewise agreed to enhance economic cooperation, and continue their efforts to deepen Philippines-Timor-Leste relations through the Philippines-Timor-Leste Policy Consultations mechanism, the first meeting of which was held in Manila in 2014. Secretary Del Rosario affirmed that “the Policy Consultations will continue to serve as a vehicle to facilitate matters of mutual interest in the years to come.”
Secretary Del Rosario encouraged as well his counterpart to continue sending Timor-Leste diplomats to the Philippines to participate in training courses offered by the Foreign Service Institute (FSI). The Secretary hoped that the training program will significantly contribute to “the professional development of the participants and forge greater people-to-people linkages between the government of the Philippines and Timor Leste.”
Secretary Del Rosario reaffirmed Philippine support for Timor Leste’s application to ASEAN as the 11th member state. He reiterated that “Timor Leste belongs to Southeast Asia and should be granted its rightful place within the ASEAN community.”
This is the first official visit of Minister Coelho to the Philippines. END