The Philippines and New Zealand have agreed to strengthen maritime security ties and affirmed cooperation in other aspects of the bilateral relations.
The two sides made the commitment during the 6th Philippines-New Zealand Foreign Ministry Consultations (FMC) hosted by the Philippines via video conference on November 4, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Wednesday.
The meeting was co-chaired by Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary for Asia and Pacific Affairs Neal Imperial with New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) South and Southeast Asia Division Manager Andrew Needs.
In a statement, the DFA said the Philippines expressed gratitude to New Zealand for its recent actions affirming the 2016 Arbitral Award on the South China Sea, particularly New Zealand’s diplomatic note to the United Nations secretary general.
The Philippines also thanked New Zealand for its support for ASEAN centrality in ensuring peace, security, and stability in the South China Sea and the Indo-Pacific.
“In the three-hour meeting, both sides acknowledged the growing breadth and depth of Philippines-New Zealand bilateral cooperation, particularly in the areas of defense and security, health, trade and investments, development cooperation, people-to-people and cultural engagements,” the DFA said.
New Zealand underscored its proposed initiatives on inclusion and diversity for Lumad communities in the Philippines, as well as its capacity-building projects in Davao and Bukidnon.
Imperial expressed appreciation for the assistance given by New Zealand to the Philippines in the fight against COVID-19.
Both countries also highlighted the ongoing cooperation in the ASEAN-New Zealand dialogue mechanism, current negotiations on an enhanced ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement, and New Zealand’s hosting and chairmanship of the APEC Economic Leaders Meeting this week.
The DFA said the FMC serves as a bilateral mechanism to chart the direction of future engagement as well as review and support progress on key initiatives spanning the entire range of Philippines-New Zealand relations.
The previous FMC was held in Wellington in 2018. — VBL, GMA News
Philippines, New Zealand agree to boost maritime security cooperation
Source: Pinoy Hub News
0 Comments