Japanese Foreign Minister Motegi Toshimitsu to Visit the Philippines

02 January 2020 — H.E. Motegi Toshimitsu, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, will undertake an Official Visit to the Philippines from 8 to 9 January 2020, as a guest of the Department of Foreign Affairs.

Foreign Minister Motegi will have a bilateral meeting with the Honorable Teodoro L. Locsin, Jr., Secretary of Foreign Affairs, on 9 January to discuss the advancement of the Philippine-Japan Strategic Partnership in terms of political dialogues, economic and infrastructure cooperation, defense and maritime security, and Japan’s support for Mindanao and the transition to the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). The Foreign Ministers will also exchange views on developments in the regional security landscape.

While in Manila, Foreign Minister Motegi is also scheduled to pay a courtesy call on President Rodrigo Roa Duterte.

This will be Foreign Minister Motegi’s first visit to the Philippines after being appointed to the post on 11 September 2019. The Philippines is part of the Foreign Minister’s four-country Southeast Asian swing that also includes stops in Vietnam, Thailand, and Indonesia.

The visit constitutes a further affirmation of the strengthened strategic partnership between the Philippines and Japan, under which both countries continue to elevate and deepen their decades-long economic cooperation, together with their engagement on strategic security issues. END