Philippine Statement
delivered by
FOREIGN AFFAIRS SECRETARY TEODORO L. LOCSIN, JR.
during the
ASEAN Post Ministerial Conference Session with the Republic of Korea
03 August 2021
Co-Chairs, Excellencies,
The world has looked up to the Republic of Korea’s responses to Covid-19 from the very start. From curbing spread of the disease, imposing necessary health protocols, sharing effective measures, from prevention and tentative cures to vaccine production and procurement, as well as preparing its people for digitization. In all those aspects, the Republic of Korea remains a model for the region. Even from the resurgence of the pandemic in Korea, we learn important lessons of the virus’s mutability into ever more insidious, infectious and deadly variations. And how to respond and thwart each new kind. Thank you, Korea.
COVID-19 unmasked vulnerabilities of the region’s economy, but it also sharpened our focus on what is important in the ASEAN-ROK dynamic.
We saw the urgency of providing safety measures for our Micro Small and Medium Enterprises. They are the backbone of our region’s economy; their survival and viability are vital to our economic recovery plan. In fact, the enhanced threat of contagion on the big scale, urges focus on the small and medium scale. Yes, small works too and is safer; maybe the medium is as big as we can afford to get — and survive. And it all turns on innovation. As such the Philippines welcomes initiatives to boost the ASEAN-ROK Start-Up Partnership, including the ASEAN-ROK Start-Up Festival this December 2021.
We also focused on upgrading the skills of our peoples. The Korean New Deal 2.0 concentrates on talent, inequalities, and creating social safety nets; it is a useful template for ASEAN efforts to further its human resources development.
ROK’s support for the implementation of education and TVET programs — including the Mobility Program — has also helped expand and improve employment. We thank the Republic of Korea.
In adapting lives and economies to increased digital connectivity as a matter of survival and recovery from the pandemic, Korea is a leader. We encourage her to increase her participation in the ASEAN Smart Cities Network initiative to enhance collective resilience through digital technology. The Philippines is also interested in Korea’s development of metaverse and cloud technologies under the Digital New Deal.
Further, ASEAN and Korea can further their collaboration in the digital content industry through capacity building and co-production. This strengthens our people-to-people ties, and highlights shared values in addition to the great values that arose from our military assistance in the Korean War. It bridges socio-cultural gaps widened by this pandemic. In our case it isn’t hard; because in the Philippines, Koreans blend in well in our communities; they are like one of us except they are very good in martial arts; although some of us can beat them in Soju. This is also in line with the upgrade of the New Southern Policy at the ASEAN-ROK Summit last November.
We urge Korea to support the work of the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity. Enhanced cooperation in this field is a necessary complement of our health and socio-economic programs.
In closing, allow me to reiterate our call for peaceful dialogue among all concerned parties for lasting peace and stability in a denuclearized Korean Peninsula. The Philippines stands ready to play a constructive role in advancing a peaceful and denuclearized Korean Peninsula bilaterally through confidence-building measures and regionally through ASEAN-led mechanisms. There can be no military solution to a conflict between brothers. Thank you.