MANILA -- President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. seeks to strengthen the country’s relations with close neighbors Indonesia and Singapore during his inaugural state visits to the said countries, Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Spokesperson and Ambassador Ma. Teresita Daza said Friday.

During a pre-departure briefing conducted via Zoom, Daza said Marcos and Indonesian President Joko Widodo are expected to discuss active and multi-faceted cooperation on defense, maritime border, economic, and people-to-people cooperation.

Marcos’ first state visit will be in Indonesia on Sept. 4-6, upon the invitation of Widodo.

During the state visit, the two presidents will witness the signing of several key agreements in the areas of defense and culture, as well as a comprehensive plan of action that will chart the countries’ bilateral priorities over the next few years.

The DFA and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Indonesia will ink the Plan of Action for five years, while a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on cultural cooperation will be signed by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts and the Ministry of Education and Culture of Indonesia.

The renewal of the 1997 Agreement on Cooperative Activities in the Field of Defense and Security will also be signed.

“The President will also meet with business leaders to promote trade and investment to support the Philippines’ economic agenda under his administration,” Daza said.

State visit to Singapore

After visiting Indonesia, Marcos will fly to Singapore for a state visit from Sept. 6 to 7 at the invitation of President Halimah Yacob.

He is scheduled to have separate meetings with the Singaporean President and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong to discuss the close bilateral relations between the two countries, as well as regional and global issues.

Marcos and Lee will also witness the signing of agreements in the areas of counter-terrorism and data privacy.

According to Daza, one of the agreements is the assignment of a team to the regional counter-terrorism information facility, which will be signed by the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Singapore Armed Forces.

The MOU on cooperation in personal data protection, which envisions strengthening the digitization efforts of both countries, will be signed by the National Privacy Commission (NPC) and the Personal Data Protection Commission of Singapore.

The President will also join an economic briefing as well as business roundtable meetings in Singapore to promote the Philippines as an investment destination aimed at creating more job opportunities in the country.

He is also expected to meet with the Filipino communities in Indonesia and Singapore to personally assure them of the government’s continuing commitment to protect their rights and promote their welfare as overseas Filipinos.

“The President’s back-to-back visits to Indonesia and Singapore as his inaugural overseas trip demonstrate the importance the Philippines places on the relations with our fellow ASEAN neighbors,” Daza said. (PND)