THE Philippines and United States have strengthened their partnership in addressing the growing threats of terrorism and transnational organized crimes.
Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II said he met with US Undersecretary for Intelligence and Analysis David Glawe of the US Department of Homeland Security to adopt ways and means on how to deal with these threats.
“To effectively wage the global war against terrorism, we need to adopt a multi-faceted and a multi-pronged approach,” Aguirre said.
Aguirre said he discussed with Glawe the matters of mutual interest and continued cooperation in the areas related to counter-terrorism efforts beneficial to both the Philippine and the United States.
“The meeting with Undersecretary Glawe is a positive step towards that direction,” he said.
The discussions covered advanced passenger information/passenger name record, enhanced information sharing, sharing of watch Lists/access to databases, biometric screening, fraudulent document training, and increased capability for internet/social media monitoring.
Aguirre noted both parties expressed their respective commitments to foster closer ties and to explore other areas of possible collaboration in the future.
“This will require us to work closely with our allies and to maintain good working relations with them as we share knowledge and resources for the eradication of a borderless menace,” Aguirre stressed.
For its part, the US Embassy said their conversation reaffirmed our joint efforts to combat child exploitation, secure global aviation against terrorism threats, as well as identify and interdict criminals and contraband crossing our borders.
Also present during the meeting were Justice Undersecretary Erickson Balmes and Bureau of Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente as well as other members of the US DHS delegation.