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Thursday, March 28, 2024

PH signs four agreements after bilateral Apec talks

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THE Philippines signed four agreements—including a comprehensive partnership pact with Australia and an anti-narcotics accord with Russia—during President Benigno Aquino III’s bilateral meetings with his counterparts Wednesday at the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Economic Leaders’ Meeting.

Aquino signed the comprehensive partnership agreement covering the political, economic, defense and security, law enforcement, and counter-terrorism fields with Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.

“Since 1946, the Philippines and Australia have cooperated in all aspects of our relations, including that of humanitarian assistance and disaster response,” Aquino said. 

Bilateral talks. President Benigno Aquino III thanks United States President Barack Obama after bilateral talks ahead of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit which officially begins today. AFP

“It is this long legacy of cooperation that we pay tribute to today in signing the Joint Declaration on Philippines-Australia Comprehensive Partnership. The Declaration acknowledges the increasing breadth and depth of our relations, which sets the tone, pace and direction of our relationship in the years ahead.”

Aquino and Turnbull also witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in technical vocational education and training  between the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority and Australia’s Department of Education and Training.

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In his bilateral meeting with South Korean President Park Gyeun-Hye, Aquino praised the close cooperation between the two countries in the area of defense acquisition.

“We are pleased with the robust logistics cooperation between our two countries as manifested by the Philippines’ acquisition of various defense materiel, most notably the FA-50 aircraft,” Aquino said. 

“We appreciate Korea’s donation of a patrol combat corvette, a landing craft utility, and 16 rubber boats to improve our military’s humanitarian assistance and disaster response capabilities.”

Aquino also asked Park to “positively consider” the proposed amendments to the Social Security Agreement to maximize the benefits and protection enjoyed by migrant workers from both countries.

He also signed two agreements on trade and campaign against illegal drugs with Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.

Aquino’s last bilateral meeting Wednesday was with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who expressed support to the Philippines’ possible accession to the United States-led Trans-Pacific Partnership.

He thanked Trudeau for making the Philippines one of Canada’s 25 countries of focus that will receive 90 percent of Ottawa’s bilateral official development assistance. 

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