Philippine President’s visit to Russia to enhance ties

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte flew to Russia on May 22 for his three-day visit to cement bilateral ties.
Philippine President’s visit to Russia to enhance ties ảnh 1 Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte (Source: EPA/VNA)
Hanoi (VNA) -   Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte flew toRussia on May 22 for his three-day visit to cement bilateral ties.

As scheduled, Duterte will meet RussianPresident Vladimir Putin on May 25 to discuss bilateral links across politics,economy-trade, culture and humanity as well as regional and global issues,focusing on ensuring security and stability in Asia-Pacific.

Both sides will issue a jointstatement and sign a number of agreements on cooperation in nationaldefence-security, judicial assistance, trade and investment, nuclear energy andculture. They plan to extend discussions on coping with security challenges.

According to Philippine AssistantSecretary of Foreign Affairs Maria Kleofe Natividad said the Philippines andRussia will enhance military coordination, firstly opening defence attachéoffices in respective embassies in Moscow and Manila in order to increasepartnerships in traditional and non-traditional issues such as fighting terrorismand drug smuggling.

The Philippines and Russiaestablished diplomatic ties 41 years ago. However, two-way trade remainsmodest, standing at 226 million USD in 2016.-VNA
VNA

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