President Benigno S. Aquino III will be leaving for the United States today to attend the two-day Asean-US Leaders Summit.
The Summit to be held in Sunnylands, California, aims to strengthen the cooperation of the members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the United States, Malacañang said on Sunday.
“The Asean and the US have raised their mutual cooperation in strategic partnership during an earlier dialogue at the 3rd Asean-US Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on Nov. 21, 2015,” said Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr.
There is a possibility that claimants to certain territories on the South China Sea may meet in the sidelines to raise the issue on the territorial disputes, Coloma said.
This was the very first meeting of the Asean member-states and the US as strategic partners, Coloma said..
Coloma said the Asean-US Leaders’ Summit will be an important event to discuss assistance that may be extended by the US to boost the Asean economic integration.
“Politics and security, such as maritime security, transnational challenges and other effective ways in dealing with violent extremism. The two-day summit will be informal so that the heads of the Asean member states will be able to express their sentiments on any issue that they think would be important,” said Coloma.
Based on the issues discussed during the last Asean Summit in Kuala Lumpur last November, President Barack Obama might have a dialogue with the heads of the Asean member states regarding issues on maritime security, he said.
“President [Benigno] Aquino [III] has always represented the Philippines’ position on the importance of ensuring freedom of navigation and overflight, as well as adherence to UNCLOS and international law,” said Coloma.
“The President has also been a leading advocate for a legally binding Code of Conduct in the South China Sea, as well as on the importance of seeking peaceful avenues for dispute resolution that underpins the Philippines’ petition before the UN Arbitral Tribunal at The Hague, a move that is being followed closely by other states with maritime entitlement claims,” said Coloma.
After the ASEAN-US Summit, Aquino is scheduled to meet with the Filipino community as well as Filipino businessmen in Los Angeles. He would then proceed to Loyola Marymount University where he will receive an honorary degree from the university.
