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| President Ferdinand "Bongbong" R. Marcos Jr. concluded his official visit to Washington, D.C., securing $1.3B in investment pledges from US companies and businesses. Photo: PBBM Media/Facebook |
President Ferdinand "Bongbong" R. Marcos Jr. (PBBM) recently concluded his official visit to Washington, D.C., where he presented a post-visit report detailing the outcomes of the delegation's bilateral meetings with US officials and business executives.
The highlight of President Marcos' visit was securing $1.3 billion in investment pledges from US companies and businesses, which could generate up to 6,700 jobs for Filipinos.
The President emphasized the Philippines' 7.6 percent economic growth rate during his visit and called on US companies to invest more in the country, recognizing these investments as significant contributors to the country's economic growth.
Aside from economic cooperation, the Philippine and US officials discussed issues such as security, defense, agriculture, climate change mitigation, and cyber security. The establishment of bilateral defense guidelines between Undersecretary Carlito Galvez of the Department of National Defense and US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin aims to modernize alliance cooperation "for a free and open Indo-Pacific region."
President Marcos believes that these new bilateral defense guidelines will be responsive to the country's challenges, citing the multidimensional approach of the guidelines in solving the issues faced by the country. The guidelines reaffirmed mutual defense commitments under the 1951 PH-US Mutual Defense Treaty in the event of an armed attack in the Pacific, including the South China Sea.
President Marcos' visit to the United States strengthens the bond between the two countries, which is "bonded by shared values and a commitment to mutual prosperity."
Philippine and US officials have had a steady exchange of official engagements at all levels of government over the past 20 months, and their meeting during the APEC Economic Leaders' Week in November is highly anticipated.
As the Philippines seeks to strengthen its international relations and promote economic growth, President Marcos will attend the coronation of King Charles III in the United Kingdom, where he is expected to meet with UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to discuss PH-UK bilateral relations, including trade relations.