President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is visiting Germany in March, Malacanang said Thursday.
During his meeting with Germany’s Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock in Malacanang yesterday, the President said his office has been in contact with the German Embassy in Manila over the past few months to arrange the visit.
Baerbock meanwhile warned of “another world crisis”” if the rising tensions in the Indo-Pacific region would not subside.
She stressed that the “world does not need another crisis” even as she said it was a point of concern even for Europe, as such activities “violate the rights” for economic development.
The German top diplomat made the statement after holding a talk with Department of Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo.
The President later welcomed Baerbock, telling her: “Your Embassy… we’ve been driving them a little crazy. We keep moving things because things have been coming up. But I think we’ve come down to the March 12th date, and so I can commit to that now.”
Baerbock told the Philippine leader that she hopes to return to Manila soon.
Her visit to Manila marked the first visit of a German foreign minister to the country in over a decade, the DFA said.
In her talk with Manalo, the German envoy cited the laser pointing, the water cannon attack, and the dangerous maneuvers against Philippine personnel in the South China Sea.
Baerbock rejected China’s claim over the West Philippine Sea, a part of the South China Sea, as she said the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) speaks a “clear language” about a country’s exclusive economic zone and the 2016 Arbitral Award was also “crystal clear” in its ruling.
The German top diplomat also stressed the need to boost security cooperation with the Philippines, which she would start on Thursday through her visit to the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) where she would get “first-hand information.”
The foreign minister said Germany is ready to provide maritime training and cooperation with the Philippines, on top of Germany’s current assistance through deploying reconnaissance drones in the Indo-Pacific.
For his part, Manalo agreed with Baerbock when she said that compliance with international law is the “best protection” and the best guarantee to ensure peace and stability amid the rising tensions.
The DFA chief said that the best cooperation that could be made between the Philippines and Germany “is to create greater awareness” on the importance and the maintenance of the rule of law in ensuring peace and stability in the region and in the world.