President Benigno Simeon Aquino III brought home a P21 billion infrastructure assistance
package and reinvigorated diplomatic ties with other countries in the Asia-Pacific region.
The President returned home Sunday evening from a successful state visit to the Socialist
Republic of Vietnam where he also attended the 17th Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASEAN) Summit and other related meetings.
In an interview, Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office
(PCDSPO) Secretary Ramon Carandang, described the President’s Vietnam trip as “very good”.
Carandang said that aside from the President’s state visit to Vietnam and his attendance of the
17th ASEAN Summit, President Aquino had bilateral meetings with the leaders of Thailand,
Myanmar, South Korea, Japan, New Zealand and Australia.
Carandang said that Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan has approved the P21-billion fund that
will be used in Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) road projects.
President Aquino also took the opportunity to invite Brunei and South Korea to participate in the
Public-Private Partnership conference to be held in the Philippines from November 18 to 19.
The visit was also a chance for the Philippines to raise concerns on several regional issues.
The President strengthened ties with other world leaders and expressed the concerns of the
country on regional issues like the South China Sea, regional disaster management, reforms in
Myanmar and the weakening US dollar.
The President likewise pushed for a diplomatic resolution of the Spratlys territorial dispute where
the Philippines claims some of the islands as its own and called for the immediate release of
detained Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
President Aquino said he also expressed support for the proposal of Thailand to have more
frequent talks among ASEAN central bankers and finance ministers to address capital inflows
that have strengthened currencies and weakened exports.
During his state visit, the President witnessed the signing of four agreements between
the Philippines and Vietnam, particularly on academic and defense cooperation, oil spill
preparedness and response, and rescue operations at sea. (PCOO)