On August 20, at the Party Central Committee Headquarters, General Secretary and President To Lam received a high-level delegation of the Philippine National Security Council led by Advisor Eduardo SL Oban Jr., who is visiting and working in Vietnam.
General Secretary and President To Lam welcomed and highly appreciated the significance of the delegation's visit, taking place in the context that the two countries are celebrating the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations (1976-2026) and have just elevated relations to a Strengthened Strategic Partnership, showing the importance, political trust and solid strategic foundation between the two countries.
General Secretary and President To Lam congratulated the Philippines on fulfilling its responsibility as ASEAN Chair in 2026, promoting the effective implementation of the ASEAN Community Vision 2045; affirmed that Vietnam supports and is ready to coordinate with the Philippines in its capacity as ASEAN Chair in 2026 and member countries to consolidate peace and security, expand prosperity corridors, strengthen connectivity, promote inclusive and sustainable development, with the ASEAN people at the center; congratulated the socio-economic development results achieved by the Philippines in the past time, especially becoming a developing country with a high middle-income income, and believed that the Philippines will continue to develop sustainably and strongly in the coming time.
Regarding relations between the two countries, General Secretary and President To Lam affirmed that Vietnam always values relations with the Philippines, which is a friendly neighbor, an important partner of Vietnam in the region, and is also an ASEAN member, both strongly committed to peace, stability, and respect for international law.
Advisor to the Philippine National Security Council Eduardo Oban was pleased to meet General Secretary and President To Lam; emphasizing that this visit is of great significance in specifically implementing the framework of the enhanced Strategic Partnership between the two countries; affirming that Vietnam is one of the top important partners of the Philippines in Southeast Asia and wishing to strengthen practical and effective cooperation with Vietnam.
The General Secretary and President requested that in the context of the world and regional situation developing complicatedly, Vietnam and the Philippines need to continue to further consolidate political trust, promote cooperation, strengthen solidarity and unity, improve resilience, adaptability, and strategic autonomy; promote contacts and exchanges of high-level and all-level delegations, across all channels, promote cooperation mechanisms, promote the signing of the Action Program to implement the enhanced Strategic Partnership; strengthen exchanges and consultations on regional and world strategic issues; promote the implementation of a number of existing maritime cooperation mechanisms; promote and expand security cooperation, especially in potential areas such as rescue and relief, application of science and technology in solving traditional and non-traditional security challenges such as transnational crime, climate change, water security, energy and food; continue to strengthen cooperation, support each other's positions, viewpoints and initiatives within the framework of ASEAN and regional cooperation.
General Secretary and President To Lam requested the two countries to continue to coordinate views and positions, resolve issues of mutual interest in the East Sea, contributing to peace and stability in the region. Vietnam is ready to participate and actively contribute, supporting the Philippines to effectively implement sea cooperation initiatives within the ASEAN framework, striving to achieve a Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC) that is truly effective, substantive, and in accordance with international law and UNCLOS 1982.
Advisor to the National Security Council of the Philippines Eduardo Oban thanked Vietnam for supporting the Philippines in its position as ASEAN Chair; wishing to promote cooperation in strategic and maritime issues, including cooperation mechanisms within ASEAN. Expressing agreement with the orientations to promote relations that the General Secretary and President mentioned, Advisor Eduardo Oban said that the Philippines and Vietnam share many common interests in promoting exchanges, dialogue and maintaining and strengthening a peaceful and stable environment in the region, resolving disagreements and disputes by peaceful means on the basis of international law and UNCLOS 1982.
Advisor Eduardo Oban affirmed that in his position, he will promote the strengthened Strategic Partnership between the two countries in a substantive and effective direction in all fields, including the field of security, based on the commitments and consensus between the leaders of the two countries.
