THE Philippines and Mongolia pledged to strengthen their trade and investment ties on Monday, reaffirming their need to expand economic cooperation to harness their resource-rich economies.
In a joint statement, Manila and Ulaanbaatar said they reaffirmed their commitments to improve private sector collaboration between their nations while also advancing their trade cooperation by expanding trade volume and promoting market access.
Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique A. Manalo met with Mongolian Foreign Minister Battsetseg Batmunk in Manila, during which they exchanged diplomatic notes, including talks for a pilot program allowing Mongolians to study English in the Philippines.
鈥淣oting that the Philippines and Mongolia are two of the world鈥檚 fastest growing economies, the Secretary and the Minister noted that the two resource-rich economies would further benefit from pursuing trade and investment synergies for expanded economic cooperation.
Ms. Battsetseg鈥檚 visit to the Philippines marks the first official visit by a Mongolian foreign minister to the country since 1984.
In a separate statement, Mr. Manalo said that he and Mongolia鈥檚 top envoy reaffirmed a 鈥渟hared interest鈥 in upholding a rules-based international order amid 鈥渆volving鈥 developments in the Indo-Pacific region.
鈥淎s indicated in our joint statement, Foreign Minister Battsetseg and I emphasized the importance of adherence to the United Nations Charter and reaffirmed our commitment to the 1982 Manila Declaration on the Peaceful Settlement of Disputes,鈥 he said.
鈥淲e also reaffirmed our commitment to the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, or UNCLOS, and to our shared vision of a world free of nuclear weapons,鈥 he added. 鈥 Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio
