We celebrate Australia Day in the Philippines today, on the heels of an exciting year for our bilateral relationship.
The most important, of course, was the elevation of our bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by our leaders, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., in September. The Strategic Partnership signifies our shared commitment to work together in a deep and meaningful way, to create a region that we all want to live in – a region which is stable, peaceful and prosperous for all of us.
In October, the sixth Philippines-Australia Ministerial Meeting followed, where Australia’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Trade Minister Don Farrell engaged with the Philippines’ Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo and Trade and Industry Secretary Alfredo Pascual in Adelaide, Australia. Together, they agreed on a practical plan to take the Strategic Partnership forward, including new cooperation in trade, defence, maritime security and green energy.
In August, Australia and the Philippines had our largest joint training activity, involving six ships, multiple aircraft and more than 2,000 defense personnel, in Palawan and Zambales. Following this, our Australian and Philippine armed forces conducted the inaugural Maritime Cooperative Activity in the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines in November. These activities highlight our shared commitment to exercising freedom of navigation and overflight consistent with international law.
And just as remarkable, Australia’s Southeast Asia Economic Strategy was launched last year. Under this long-term plan, Australia and the Philippines will work closer together to realize the commercial potential between our two countries and the rest of the region. A lot of exciting things are developing in this space, including the recently signed agreement to boost our fintech cooperation, and a series of two-way business missions between our countries.
With our bilateral relationship at its highest point in history, this year’s Australia Day celebration in the Philippines feels more special to me and my fellow Australians than ever before.
For Australians, today is a time to reflect on the stories that have shaped modern Australia. The story of our country began a long time ago. For at least 65,000 years, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have lived in the great southern continent that we now call Australia. For millennia, Indigenous Australians have been the land’s traditional owners and custodians of a vibrant culture—the oldest living culture in the world—that continues to enrich us.
In the twenty-first century, Australia is a nation of migrants including over 400,000 Filipinos who now call Australia home. We are proud to be the most successful multicultural society on earth: one in four Australians are migrants like me, and almost half of all Aussies have a parent born overseas. For our newest arrivals, Australia Day is a particularly memorable occasion, as it is when local communities across the country hold Citizenship Ceremonies to formally welcome them.
Ahead of what will no doubt be an even busier and more exciting 2024, I invite all of you to join us and raise a glass to toast Australia Day, and the role that Filipinos and our countries’ bilateral relationship have played in making Australia the successful country it is today.
