PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte will visit Vietnam, one of the Philippines’ allies, from Sept. 28 to 29, Malacañang said Wednesday.
Palace sources said Duterte will also visit China and Brunei in October, and later Peru for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, before making a side trip to San Francisco to meet the Filipino community there.
During the Philippines’ hosting of the Apec summit last year, it and Vietnam signed a strategic partnership agreement to boost cooperation in several areas, including defense and maritime security.
China’s growing assertiveness in the South China Sea has led to a growing cooperation between Manila and Hanoi who claim certain areas in the South China Sea, as do Taiwan, Malaysia, Brunei and China.