Arrival Statement by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. Following his Participation in the 47th ASEAN and Related Summits in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Magandang araw!

I have just attended the 47th ASEAN Summit and Related Summits in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The summit was once again an opportunity to discuss among our fellow ASEAN Member States and partners how to navigate our future together amidst the various geopolitical and economic challenges that we face domestically, bilaterally, regionally, and globally.

We discussed significant international issues that emerging challenges that not only impact our peoples and our nation, but also the entire region, especially the West Philippine Sea.

I reaffirmed that the Philippines will continue to remain firm, calm and resolute in defending our sovereignty, our sovereign rights and jurisdiction in the West Philippine Sea in accordance with, of course, international law.

We will continue to strengthen our partnerships with all countries who share our values and our commitment to peace, to stability, and to economic progress.

The leaders and I also discussed the ongoing situation in Myanmar and the implementation of the Five-Point Consensus to bring about a peaceful and lasting solution, which is Myanmar-owned and Myanmar-led.

During this past 47th Summit, we welcomed the full accession of Timor-Leste as the 11th member of ASEAN. This is a historic step that reaffirms ASEAN’s commitment to unity and inclusivity.

We remain committed to pursuing initiatives that will support Timor-Leste’s capacity to assume its obligations as a full member of ASEAN, with the end goal of further building a people-centered ASEAN.

The leaders and I spoke about future-proofing our region through economic cooperation and sustainable growth.

We heard discussions from the IMF, from the BRICS group, from G20, amongst others. We reaffirmed the ASEAN’s collective commitment to rules-based, open, inclusive, transparent, and non-discriminatory multilateral system.

We strengthened our trade with external partners with upgrades in the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement, amendments in our Free Trade Agreements, and utilization of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, or RCEP.

At a time when the rules-based trading system faces significant challenges, these agreements will provide transparency, stability, and predictability – key foundations for building confidence among businesses and investors, and for sustaining ASEAN’s role as a driver of regional and global growth.

This economic development goes hand in hand with strengthening the social-cultural community.

We discussed the progress achieved and the actions moving forward for the environment, climate change, education, green jobs, and health.

During this Summit, the ASEAN leaders and I met with our counterparts from the United States, from Japan, India, China, the Republic of Korea, the United Nations, New Zealand, Australia.

I highlighted the progress of our dialogue partnerships and how we envision the way forward together.

On the sidelines of the Summit, I met leaders and discussed ways to further strengthen our partnerships and expand cooperation in strategic areas. I met with the leaders of Cambodia, Canada, Thailand, Japan, the EU, Vietnam, Australia, New Zealand, and with the United Nations Secretary-General.

We reaffirmed our commitment to deepen bilateral relations and discussed cooperation on many fields of mutual interest, fields such as security and defense, maritime, climate action, trade, investment, agriculture, and people-to-people relations.

And I thank them for expressing their support for our ASEAN Chairship in 2026. The Philippine delegation and I are grateful to Malaysia, the Chair of ASEAN this year, and our generous host for the successful 47th ASEAN Summit and Related Summits and 2025 Chairship of ASEAN.

During the closing ceremony of the summits, Malaysia turned over the ASEAN Chairship to us. As the 2026 Chair of ASEAN, the Philippines looks forward to building on the gains of Malaysia’s inclusivity and sustainability theme and carry ASEAN forward as we, as is our theme, “Navigate our Future, Together.”

Maraming, maraming salamat at magandang araw po sa inyong lahat.

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