Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 22) — The Czech Republic has assured the Philippines that it can be a reliable partner in the Indo-Pacific region amid tensions in the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait.
In an interview with CNN Philippines, Czech Ambassador Jana Šedivá highlighted the importance of partnerships in maintaining peace and stability in the region.
“We wanted to show that we are partners and you can rely on us whatever happens, even here it matters to us,” said Šedivá.
The Czech envoy said that they can work together with Manila in improving the Philippine Coast Guard in its maritime activities, particularly in aviation.
“We have few projects in aviation not only in defense but coast guard and these projects are still going on, I hope we can finalize soon. But Czechs are famous for multitasking small aircrafts and we can also do sharing of systems,” added Šedivá.
“We have our own Indo-Pacific strategy…Everything is ready and this is something we can offer,” the envoy continued.
In 2017, both the Philippines and the Czech Republic signed a defense cooperation agreement which seeks to boost humanitarian response, defense logistics, military training and education between the two countries.
Last April, Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala and President Bongbong Marcos vowed to strengthen security cooperation as they discussed the situation in the West Philippine Sea.
