On June 1, after attending the state welcoming ceremony at Malacanang Palace, Manila capital, General Secretary and President To Lam held talks with Philippine President Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos Jr.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. affirmed that Vietnam is the only country in Southeast Asia where the Philippines has relations at the Strategic Partnership level, showing the Philippines' importance to this relationship.
Officially raising the relationship to a strengthened Strategic Partnership during the visit of General Secretary and President To Lam this time will further strengthen bilateral relations, opening a new stage of cooperation in the fields of politics, defense - security and other substantive fields for the benefit of the people of the two countries, for peace, stability and development of the region.
General Secretary and President To Lam affirmed that Vietnam always values and wishes to further deepen the friendly neighborly relations with the Philippines in all fields on the basis of a common commitment to peace, stability, and respect for international law.
At the talks, the two sides agreed to issue a Joint Statement raising the level of Vietnam - Philippines relations to a strengthened Strategic Partnership, opening a new era of development for bilateral cooperation.
With the elevation of the relationship framework to a strengthened Strategic Partnership, the two sides agreed to coordinate to jointly develop an Action Program to implement the new relationship framework in the coming time.
Regarding trade, the two sides agreed on major orientations to create breakthroughs in economic cooperation to bring real benefits to the people and the development of each country; emphasized the goal of soon reaching a trade turnover of 10 billion USD, reducing trade barriers, diversifying exports to potential items, opening up markets for agricultural products, including fresh fruits of each country; expanding cooperation to new fields such as digital economy, green economy, marine economy, high-tech agriculture, renewable energy; promoting agricultural, forestry and fishery trade cooperation.
Affirming that Vietnam is an important partner of the Philippines in providing fertilizers and rice to ensure food security, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. proposed that the two sides soon hold the 3rd meeting of the Philippines - Vietnam Joint Trade Committee; promote the implementation of agreements reached within the framework and regulations of the World Trade Organization (WTO).
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. affirmed that the Philippines welcomes Vietnamese investors to explore and expand investment in the fields of renewable energy, healthcare, digital transformation, etc.; The Philippines will provide many preferential policies, creating the most favorable conditions for Vietnamese investors.
The two leaders shared common views on promoting substantive cooperation in a number of priority areas, focusing on developing sustainable agriculture, regenerative agriculture, connecting hard infrastructure, opening more direct flights, strengthening cooperation between a number of typical port pairs; sharing experiences on digital transformation, building digital government, applying artificial intelligence and developing smart cities.
