Metro Manila, Philippines— The Philippines and South Korea vowed to fast track the joint declaration on the strategic partnership that will set the tone of bilateral ties.
Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique A. Manalo was on an official visit to the Republic of Korea (ROK) on Aug. 6-9 and met with Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul. Manalo also paid a courtesy call on Prime Minister Han Duck-soo.
“Secretary Manalo and FM Cho acknowledged the need to fast track the work on the Joint Declaration on the Strategic Partnership between the Republic of the Philippines and the Republic of Korea, which would guide the future direction of the two countries’ growing relationship. It was an important highlight of Secretary Manalo’s visit,” said the DFA in a statement.
Both sides also discussed wide-ranging areas of concern such as political, defense, security, economic and development cooperation, as well as people-to-people ties.
“They exchanged views on regional and international matters including ASEAN-ROK relations, the Korean peninsula, South China Sea, the situation in Myanmar, and multilateral cooperation,” the DFA added.
During his visit to South Korea, Manalo had the opportunity to visit the Joint Security Area, which is the only portion of the Demilitarized Zone where officials from both sides of the peninsula could stand face-to-face.
“Thank you to the UN Command for the briefing and tour of the Joint Security Area #JSA. The Philippines, as a contributing State to the Command, recognizes its invaluable role in upholding & preserving freedom & peace in the Peninsula,” said Manalo in a post on X (former Twitter) on Monday.
Diplomatic relations between the Philippines and South Korea were established on March 3, 1949. The Philippines was the fifth nation to recognize the Republic of Korea.
