Singapore, Philippines agree to fight terrorism hinh anh 1Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte (Source: Reuters)
Hanoi (VNA) – Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte discussed anti-terrorism during their talks in Singapore on December 15.

The Philippines’ Rappler website quoted Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay as saying the two countries’ leaders talked a lot about the areas of mutual cooperation, particularly in the field of fighting terrorism, illegal drugs and transnational crimes.

The Philippine President arrived in Singapore early on the day to start his two-day State visit to Singapore with a view to enhancing mutual understanding since the Philippines will serve as Chair of ASEAN in 2017.

In a statement, the Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the two sides called on the bloc to forge coordination to cope with challenges posed by cross-border crimes, terrorism, human and drug trafficking.

At a reception for President Duterte, Singaporean counterpart Tony Tan said his country’s companies could continuously help the Philippines develop high-quality infrastructure, urban planning and information technology services.

Tan highlighted that two sides should seek ways to enhance connectivity in order to boost trade links and tourism growth.

They agreed that it was an opportunity to further broaden and deepen their ties, including security cooperation.

On December 16, Duterte is scheduled to meet Singaporean businesspeople and talk to the 180,000-member Philippine community.

Singapore is the Philippines’ fourth biggest trade partner and top ASEAN investor. It welcomes about 700,000 visitors from the Philippines every year.-VNA
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