The Philippines and the United States started their fifth bilateral strategic dialogue on January 20 in Manila, the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs said.

US Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Russel and Assistant Secretary of Defense David Shear headed the US delegation to the dialogue, while Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs Evan Garcia and Undersecretary of Defense Pio Lorenzo Batino led the Philippine delegation.

The two-day dialogue discussed issues such as law enforcement, defense and security, economics, and regional and global diplomatic engagement, as well as future directions for the bilateral relationship.

The last dialogue was held in March 2014 in Washington.-VNA