The Philippines is set to talk with Japan and the United States for a trilateral meeting on the sidelines of the 43rd Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit here in Indonesia, a government official said on Tuesday.
During an interview with the media, Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel “Babe” Romualdez confirmed the meeting between the three nations.
“The trilateral meeting was actually requested by both the United States and Japan for the Philippines to get together here in Jakarta,” said Romualdez.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will meet US Vice President Kamala Harris and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida for the planned trilateral talk.
Asked what would be the agenda of the meeting, Romualdez said the discussion will most likely be about the West Philippine Sea and economic cooperation.
“Well, it’s—we’re all allies, basically Japan, the United States and the Philippines. So I’m sure, obviously, the West Philippine Sea, will most likely be part of the discussion, but mostly in cooperation and how Japan, the United States, and the Philippines will work together, especially in the area of economic security, which is also very important for us,” said Romualdez.
Romualdez added that the President is “very eager” to discuss pressing matters in the the surrounding areas, which include the West Philippine Sea.
He downplayed questions on how China would react to the meeting, saying “it’s nothing new” to have a meeting between allied countries.
“I don’t think there’s any (China’s reaction)—it’s nothing new that in meetings like this, in summits like this, there is always a lot of bilateral meetings between so many countries. I know that people are putting meaning into it, special meeting into it because of the situation in our part of the world but at the end of the day, it is really a meeting of friends and allies and partners,” said Romualdez.
The schedule for the meeting is still being planned out, the ambassador said.
