MANILA — President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. vowed to articulate the legal and geopolitical position of the Philippines on the West Philippine Sea (WPS) before this year’s International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore on Friday.
President Marcos said the importance of the waterway to global trade and economy would be thoroughly mentioned in his message for the 21st edition of the dialogue.
President Marcos made the remarks in a media interview in Brunei Darussalam on Wednesday when asked about the significance of crafting defense and security policies and pushing for the country’s rights in WPS.
According to the President, his keynote address to the IISS Shangri-La Dialogue on Friday is highly important, saying the “invitation in itself is highly significant.”
Marcos is the first Philippine president to deliver a keynote message for the IISS Shangri-La Dialogue.
“The fact that they asked the Philippine President to come and speak on that very subject is significant in the sense that it is a recognition that there are challenges that are facing the Philippines, specifically,” President Marcos told reporters.
“And not only the Philippines. this affects the region and it affects the world. So, what I will present in the Shangri-la forum [the] day after tomorrow is going to essentially try to explain the position of the Philippines for both legally and geopolitically and diplomatically. And how we see the ways forward for the Philippines and for the region,” he said.
The WPS is so important to international trade, the President said, stressing that its stakeholders are no longer limited to Southeast Asia, Asia, and Indo-Pacific. It’s so important because it already involves the global economy, Marcos pointed out. He said the Philippines’ position will be important in the decision-making of many of the policymakers around the world.
Aside from addressing the IISS Shangri-La Dialogue, Marcos will have a series of high-level meetings with Singaporean officials as part of his two-day working visit to the Southeast Asian country.
President Marcos’ visit to Singapore is upon the invitation of former Prime Minister Lee Hsein Loong. (PND)
