Singapore”•President Rodrigo Duterte will hold bilateral meetings with each leader of the powerful countries such as Russia, China and the United States during his attendance of the 33rd Association of Southeast Asian Nations Summit here in Singapore, an official said Monday.
Philippine Ambassador to Singapore Joseph Del Mar Yap said Duterte will engage in a dialogue with each of the mentioned countries.
Duterte will also attend the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Economic Leaders’ Meeting this week which will be hosted by Papua New Guinea for the first time.
In a pre-departure briefing in Malacañang, Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Ernesto Abella said Duterte will join 20 other APEC leaders and representatives in the meeting that will take place on Nov. 17 and 18 in Port Moresby.
Yap said Duterte will have an opportunity to discuss “relevant issues” with Russian President Vladimir Putin, US Vice President Mike Pence and the representatives from China.
“There will be bilateral meetings with individual countries because, for example, the Russian President [Vladimir] Putin is attending. And there will also be representatives from China, from the US and so on,” Yap said.
“So, there will be opportunities for President Duterte to meet up with them and discuss relevant issues with them.”
Yap said the Philippines was looking forward to bringing into the discussion table several key topics such as the concern for migrant rights and migration, the finalization of the free-trade agreement called the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, and the South China Sea.
“The key topics that are of importance to the Philippines, number one is our concern about migrant rights and migration. So that has been one of the important topics that we push for ASEAN and that continues to be an important topic,” Yap said.
He said Filipino workers in Singapore were enjoying a “secure presence” as the Singapore government continued to improve their working condition.
But he said the talks about their welfare around the globe also needed proper discussion following the acquittal of Jennifer Dalquez from the death row in the United Arab Emirates.
“Number two is the South China Sea. We are negotiating and ASEAN is negotiating a code of conduct with China on the South China Sea, West Philippine Sea.
“So that is also an important thing to be looking at.”
Meanwhile, Yap also underscored the salient points of the finalization of RCEP, stressing its similarity with another proposed trade agreement initially led by the US called the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).
However, the TPP was not ratified as the US pulled itself out of the partnership last year.
“So RCEP is a similar program, except it’s a grouping of slightly different countries involved. China, for example, is not part of TPP, but it will be part of RCEP. And the Philippines as well was not part of TPP, but we will be part of RCEP,” Yap said, noting that if RCEP was signed, the agreement would boost free trade.
“It will actually open up a very large grouping of countries who will be enjoying more free trade among themselves. The reason why we’re doing it is that hopefully it will generate jobs, create wealth and development for the participants in that RCEP,” Yap said.
Presidential Spokesman Salvador Panelo said the 33rd ASEAN Summit was an opportunity for the country to join in discussions pertaining to the progress of the ASEAN Community blueprints.
“The related summits in Singapore will give the President the chance to witness the progress of ASEAN’s relations with its dialogue partners, with the goal of fostering deeper cooperation on priority areas including peace, security, economy, and overall well-being of our people,” he said in a statement Monday.
Duterte is set to arrive in Singapore at 8 pm on Monday and will leave at 6 pm on Thursday to attend the 2018 APEC Economic Leaders Meeting in Papua New Guinea, where he will have a chance to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping.
While the President is out of the country, Panelo confirmed that Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea will oversee the functions of the Chief Executive.
Duterte’s delegation to the 33rd ASEAN Summit in Singapore includes 10 high-ranking officials such as Yap, Panelo, Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez, National Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez, newly designated Social Welfare Secretary Rolando Bautista, National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon, Communications Secretary Martin Andanar, and Philippine Permanent Representative to ASEAN Elizabeth Buensuceso. With PNA
