Marcos, Biden, Ishiba pledge to strengthen ties in phone call

FILE PHOTOS: President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., US President Joe Biden, and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba

MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., US President Joe Biden, and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Monday committed to further strengthening trilateral ties across various areas of cooperation.

The three leaders held a trilateral phone call to discuss their ongoing partnership.

“I am confident that our three countries will continue to work together closely to sustain the gains that we have made in enhancing and deepening our ties,” Marcos said in the phone call, as quoted in a statement from the Presidential Communications Office (PCO).

READ: Marcos: PH-US-Japan trilateral meet a result of ‘deepening relations’

Last April, Marcos, Biden, and former Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida met in a trilateral summit in Washington, DC, where they reaffirmed their commitment to a peaceful, secure, and prosperous Indo-Pacific.

During Monday’s phone call, Marcos highlighted the substantial progress made in implementing bilateral and trilateral cooperation. He cited achievements in areas such as economic growth and resilience, technology, climate cooperation, clean energy, and promoting peace and security, as outlined in the Trilateral Joint Vision Statement adopted in April.

READ: US visit: Marcos arrives for PH-Japan-US trilateral meet

Historic progress

The PCO said Biden echoed Marcos’ sentiments, saying that the three countries “have made historic progress especially in maritime security, economic security, and technology cooperation.”

“Since then, we’ve made historic progress in our trilateral partnership, especially in areas of maritime security, economic security, technology cooperation, and high-quality infrastructure investments … We should continue to deepen our cooperation in these areas, I believe,” said Biden.

READ: Only Marcos granted meeting with Biden; maritime dispute, other key issues tackled — Palace

He further commended Marcos for his diplomatic response “to China’s aggressive and coercive activities in the South China Sea.”

Biden also said, “Simply put, our countries have an interest in continuing this partnership and institutionalizing our cooperation across our governments so that it is built to last. I’m optimistic that my successor will also see the value of continuing this partnership, and that it is framed the right way.”

Meanwhile, Ishiba stressed the importance of deepening their trilateral cooperation.

“Going forward, it is important to deepen trilateral cooperation in a variety of fields,” he said.