Kapihan with the Media

Magandang araw po.

I have just concluded my participation in the ASEAN-Russia Commemorative Summit in Kazan, Russia, where I served as co-chair alongside President Vladimir Putin.

The Summit marked the 35th anniversary of ASEAN-Russia relations and offered a timely opportunity for ASEAN Leaders and President Putin to take stock of our partnership and chart a course forward amidst an increasingly complex global environment.

We exchanged views on significant regional and international developments, including the South China Sea and of course, the situation in the Middle East.

We also discussed ways to strengthen cooperation in areas that bear directly on the stability, resilience, and prosperity of our peoples.

Our discussions reaffirmed the importance of deepening practical cooperation on shared security challenges such as terrorism, transnational crime, cybercrime, and other non-traditional threats, as well as sustaining ASEAN–Russia engagement across all community pillars through our existing mechanisms.

The Summit [adopted] several key outcome documents that will shape the next chapter of our Strategic Partnership.

These include:

– The Kazan Declaration 2026: “ASEAN-Russia: Unity in Diversity – 35 Years Together”. This articulates our shared vision for the future.

– The ASEAN–Russia Joint [Statements] on Cultural Cooperation and on Energy Cooperation; and

– The Asia – Oh, sorry, and the ASEAN-Russia Comprehensive Plan of Action 2026-2030, which serves as the principal roadmap for cooperation across the political-security, economic, and socio-cultural pillars over the next five years.

Our discussions also underscored the growing interconnections of regional processes across Eurasia.

In this spirit, I had constructive engagements with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the Eurasian Economic Union including through the Eurasian Economic Commission covering inter-regional dialogue and practical cooperation in trade and investment, energy security, connectivity, agriculture, tourism, and addressing transnational challenges.

On the margins of the summit, I held a very productive bilateral meeting with President Putin where we reaffirmed the friendship and cooperation between Russia and the Philippines as we look forward to the next 50 years in our relations.

We discussed ways to further advance our bilateral partnership across trade and investment, energy security, agriculture, science and technology, education, and people-to-people exchanges.

The Philippine delegation and I are grateful to the Government and people of the Russian Federation for their warm hospitality and the successful hosting of this Commemorative Summit.

Maraming salamat po at magandang araw po sa inyong lahat. Alright.

Q: Hello, sir.

THE PRESIDENT: Hello.

Q: Sir, it was mentioned during your joint press conference with President Putin about energy cooperation.

THE PRESIDENT: Yes.

Q: Were there firm agreements reached between the Philippines and Russia?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, in terms of… I don’t know if in terms of energy that there have been no – there have been no firm agreements, but merely in – an understanding that we will continue to develop what we had already started in a – as a response to the oil crisis that was the effect of the war in the Middle East which we are hoping will come to an end soon.

But, nonetheless, even if the war does come to an end, we, Philippines will still continue to look for so-called non-traditional partners in terms of the supply of petroleum products.

And I can – I can say that President Putin, the Russian Federation’s –  the government has – was very – was very open to any kind of suggestion that we do increase that engagement and that we look further into supplying – getting our supplies of petroleum products from Russia.

The reason being is that what we been – what we have been doing with Russia in terms of providing oil products to the Philippines has been a very – on a very ad hoc basis.

Because kung anong – because noong pumutok ‘yung giyera, eh basta kung saan kayo makakuha, kung saan makakuha.

Sa – tingnan ninyo – basta’t kausapin niyo lahat. Maghanap tayo ng makukunan natin ng petroleum products. One of those – one of those places was Russia.

Pero oh sige, one shipment here, one shipment there. Saan idadaan? And all of…

But there’s no – there was no real system in place.

Now we are beginning to put that system in place and I think it will be very good for the Philippines to have another assured lifeline when it comes to petroleum products.

Should anything like this happen again, we don’t know if the supply will again be – be suddenly – suddenly be cut, but now we have many more options than we did before.

Q: Sir, does that mean that we will regularly source from Russia?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, this is yet to be – this is yet to be decided.

There are many complications to that. It is not that simple, a signing a trade agreement.

There are, of course, political considerations – geopolitical considerations.

But… when two parties are determined to make it work, I’m always very confident that it will work and we will find a way around those challenges and those complications so that we make it a reality.

Q: Mr. President. Hi, sir. Sir, yesterday, President Vladimir Putin mentioned that the Philippines and Russia’s bilateral trade is only at around half a billion U.S. dollars.

THE PRESIDENT: Yes.

Q: That’s about less than three percent of Russia’s bilateral trade with ASEAN, which is at US18.13 billion.

THE PRESIDENT: It’s close to 20 already.

Q: Already. It increased.

THE PRESIDENT: Yeah.

Q: That was a data from ASEAN as of 2024.

THE PRESIDENT: [Inaudible] Well, we’ve done a little better, actually.

We – our trade levels now are up to [inaudible] five – five billion. But malayo pa ‘yan.

There’s so much potential, there’s so many things that we can still do.

And one of the – one of the results of the ASEAN-Russia Summit… Of course, the Philippines took advantage of this to do also some bilateral – bilateral – try to come to some bilateral arrangements with Russia.

That – one of the things that we recognize is that there’s so much more that we can do. Because I suppose we still – we are still – have that – that  kind of institutional momentum from the [inaudible] – from the bipolar power arrangement around the world where we, the Philippines, were very much aligned with the United States on the other side of the Soviet Union, which is a similar situation for, at that time, all countries around the world.

So, we have shed that. We have shed that kind of idea. And we look at the world in a much more – much different way than we did in 1976 when we first signed our agreement – our diplomatic agreement with the then Soviet Union. And so we are adjusting that.

And so yes, I –  the – they are – it’s a – because there are two aspects to it.

One is that what we are already doing in terms of agriculture, petroleum – energy supply, food costs, et cetera.

Beyond that, we – now are available other sectors that we didn’t talk about before. We talked a great deal about nuclear energy. We talked a great deal about space technology. We talked a great deal about AI, of course, as we always do.

So, there are many, many, many things –  many areas that have become available to us that did not exist before.

And beyond that, the level of trade and engagement in the traditional areas is still quite low because, again, of our continued attachment perhaps to the old way of doing business. But we are shedding that and I think that – that gives us a great deal of potential in terms of developing our relation with Russia, in terms of many, many different sectors.

Ang pinag-uusapan dati lang, agrikultura, mga petroleum supplies. Ngayon, kasama na diyan ‘yung energy stability, pati food supply, food exchange, ‘yung import-export sa pagkain.

We import from them. They hopefully will –  we can export to Russia. Maraming areas talaga na nakita namin.

One of the – one of the best areas was in agriculture. Of course, we talk about buying fertilizer from them. We’ve been buying wheat from Russia for many, many years.

And that – but beyond that now, we are talking about so many other areas that we didn’t – we didn’t really discuss before and I mentioned a few of them. But there’s even more than that.

Q: Sir, since you already mentioned that there is a push to pivot away from the polarity, from the geopolitical polarity, what was the tipping point that prompted you to veer away from Manila’s traditional alliance with Washington?

THE PRESIDENT: It wasn’t really a… it was a recognition that the world has changed. That does not – that it’s not the way the world is formed anymore.

The traditional power structures and the traditional powers are no longer the powers that exist when, for example, the United Nations was formed right after the war. So, we, the Philippines is just responding, adjusting to the new reality.

And very early on, I think you remember, I already said that the Philippines does – has – no longer subscribes to a bipolar world where you have to choose one side over the other.

And during this summit, there was a lot of talk about multipolarity and multipolar – the multipolar world that we now have to deal with, which may be a little bit more complex, but it also provides more opportunities than we had before.

And that, I think, was one of the main results and findings that we arrived at during the summit.

Q: Sir, last on this topic on the bilateral trade with Russia before we shift to other topics as well.

The European Union and the US, as well as Singapore, has it’s no secret that they have imposed sanctions against Russia over its war against Ukraine.

THE PRESIDENT: Yes.

Q: How concerned are you with a possible backlash or criticism from other like-minded nations that we have been partnering with because of concerns that the Philippines or ASEAN in general might be indirectly funding the war with Ukraine?

THE PRESIDENT: Oh, certainly that’s a concern. And it’s not something as I said – as I’ve always said, we are – we are – the Philippines is one of the, if not the greatest – the greatest sponsor, supporter for peace, and not only in our region but everywhere else.

And certainly those – that is not something that we would like to be accused of and would not like to be part of.

We would certainly not would want to be part of any system that furthers conflict anywhere in the world.

And so that is – those are the decisions that those are the very… And some of them very nuanced decisions that we will have to be making in the future.

Q: And what are the safeguards to make sure that – what are the safeguards that to make sure that the Philippines   [inaudible]?

THE PRESIDENT: Oh, that’s very much a case-to-case thing. Depends on what area you are talking about.

Because if you… You know, if you – in terms of the – in terms of the volume of trade, for example, that we have to get today with Russia, it comprises such a small part of their general revenue generation that it cannot be – it clearly cannot be said that it is funding conflict anywhere.

So, we will just have to be very careful to make sure that we are not inadvertently becoming part of a system that is encouraging war in any way.

Q: Sir, I understand you and President Putin wants to explore people exchanges, tourism. Were you able to talk about any concrete plans in order to strengthen the tourism agreements, people exchanges between Russia and the Philippines?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, again, we haven’t – we have not come to any finality in those terms – what arrangements that we have made in Russia have been quite – ayun, I used to go with the term ad hoc because that’s exactly what they were.

It is just – it was just we tried to get to the next part, you know. Get another shipload of products, commodities to the Philippines. Okay, after that, we’ll have to find another system. So, that’s what we have been trying to do now.

And we have been made aware of so many mechanisms that are available to us that we didn’t really think about before.

And that’s a – that was the main subject, actually, of our lunch meeting this afternoon. When the – the Russian Federation actually presented to the ASEAN leaders some of the areas and some of the mechanisms that are available that maybe we haven’t taken full advantage of that we should. And that’s what we will continue to develop.

In fact, I have asked both ASEAN to find ways to work with the Russian Federation as ASEAN. But also, I have asked our – the officials in our own government to find ways to work in terms of bilateral agreements with Russia, so there’s a very, very – there is a big, big potential there that we really haven’t explored before but we will now.

Q: Siguro, sir, just to ano lang dive deeper on that tourism side lang.

THE PRESIDENT: Oo.

Q: Mayroon ba kayong siguro po kahit – [inaudible] Ambassador Igor mentioned that there is a currently ongoing application of Siberian Airlines po na magkaroon ng direct flights from Cebu and Manila to –

THE PRESIDENT: Yes.

Q: Siberian cities. Mayroon po kayong siguro plans – Is the administration planning to express strong support when it comes to –

THE PRESIDENT: Oh, certainly yeah. Very strong. Yes. Absolutely. Sure.

But you know, we are not talking only about – we’re not only talking about tourism. Of course, it’s an important part and we would like many more to – both ways for more Filipinos to go to see Russia, for more Russians to come and visit the Philippines.

But also any kind of travel, any kind of engagement at any level, even if it’s not G2G, even if it’s purely commercial, even if it’s some hybrid arrangement that we might decide to come to.

These are all elements that will help those – the growth of our trade.

And that’s why it’s so important to us that, number one, that there is already an agreement for the flight between Irkutsk and Kalibo, Aklan.

So, that’s a good start.

And as I understand it, Cebu Pacific is already looking at further flights.

And as we all know, the single most important determinant of the volume of tourism and travel between two countries are the number of flights. The more flights you have, the more people come.

It’s really – the – the formula is very, very simple. And so, we will continue to find ways. And this has become the effect of our policy of developing regional airports so that our visitors – the visitors that come to the Philippines need not go through Manila necessarily, unless they really want to go to Manila.

But if they want to go to somewhere else, then we will have – we will start to see these regional airports becoming available as stops so that the tourists especially can go directly to their final destination.

Q: Sir, in connection with Joash’s question. Were there talks with the Russian government about making Filipinos travel through Russia visa-free?

THE PRESIDENT: No, we never got that far.

But you know, if – it’s something… We did it with India, we’ve done it with China. If it’s something that we feel will be of advantage to both Russia and the Philippines, I don’t see why not.

That’s become the – that’s become the method, the order of the day now.

And we very much would like to increase our tourists trade.

So, that’s something that down the road maybe we can look at.

And I have no – I cannot find any serious objections to it.

Q: Thank you, Sir.

THE PRESIDENT: Yeah.

Q:  Sir, two points. First, will you bring home some investment pledges or actual investments to the Philippines from Russia? Were you able to speak with some Russian business leaders here.

THE PRESIDENT: Well, we’re still very much at the starting point here.

Like I said, some of the areas that we now see from the summit that are available to us… This applies not only to the Philippines, it applies also to other ASEAN countries.

We just – we – it’s not something that immediately springs to mind.

But of course, with the Philippines, we always think our biggest trade partners are United States or Japan. And that’s our natural tendency because of so many years of habit, if you want to call it that.

So, now, we – that again, ASEAN, it fits into that mold, not necessarily the United States, but the same thing, that we have grown used to in traditional way of doing business, of trade discussions.

But so, we will move it forward. And we are – we have just started the process.

And so there are no definite – there are no definite agreements that have been signed.

But the – certainly, the number one thing that we have been able to do is to identify sectors that we can further work on, that we can further develop.

And that have, in my opinion, a very serious potential for development, not only for trade, for people-to-people, cultural exchanges, all of these things.

What all countries do to engage each other and to make the relationship stronger, deeper, more vibrant. And that’s what we – that’s what we are hoping to achieved.

Q: Sir, common considerations among investors regardless of what nationality would be energy prices in the Philippines as well as political stability in the country. Talk has been rised about a Cabinet reshuffle or a rebound once again.

THE PRESIDENT: Yeah, you keep talking about that. I don’t know why.

Q: Well, there seems to be a lot of sources who keep on whispering. Whispers are have been… Malacañang has been filled with whispers. Take  for example –

THE PRESIDENT: Why? Who’s going to be changed again?

Q: [laughs] According to reports with sources not being cited. DOH secretary –

THE PRESIDENT: My favorite source of information. Sources not to be cited.

Q: Sir, unfortunately, that’s [inaudible] the law protects us from citing our sources. So, anyway, sir. [laughs]

THE PRESIDENT: Okay, fair enough.

Q: For example, DOH Secretary Ted Herbosa has been reportedly on his way out, allegedly to be replaced by former DOH Undersecretary Vergeire. Let’s go [inaudible]  to that agency first.

THE PRESIDENT: I know, I heard that too. But there… We’ve – what – the most I hear about it is from you guys, not from within government.

Q: So, no Cabinet reshuffle happening because everybody’s on a wait-and-see mode on whether or not Benhur Abalos will make a comeback into your administration.

THE PRESIDENT: And who will be removed?

Q: Allegedly?

THE PRESIDENT: Yeah.

Q: Well, there were a lot of options, according to the Malacanang’s information.

THE PRESIDENT: I’m a – okay, I’ll be very candid, I’ll be very frank with you.

Of course, I want Benhur to play a more active role in government.

Of course, he has been there and he has been helping us in many ways, informally, privately.

I wouldn’t mind finding a way for him to help us in an official capacity.

But to – just because we want him to join, to become a more active – to play a more active part in government, doesn’t mean it necessarily means that somebody else has to be – it’s not a zero-sum thing in the Cabinet that you have to remove somebody to gain somebody else.

And you know, I think we have a really good group of people in the Cabinet right now. And we are working well together.

And I don’t see the need… I don’t see why you keep talk – why does this subject keep coming up?

Q: Because a lot of people have –

THE PRESIDENT: Because I have to tell you, when we sit around the table in meetings, we don’t talk about that.

Q: So, sir, definitely no Cabinet reshuffle happening. Sighs of relief. Your Cabinet secretaries [inaudible] –

THE PRESIDENT: Who else? Wait, reshuffle means more than one.

Q: Yeah.

THE PRESIDENT: Who else?

Q: There were also information from multiple sources claiming…

THE PRESIDENT: Naks, multiple sources.

Q: [laughs] Of course, at least two. Anyway, sir. There are some sources who have been claiming that Secretary Remulla, Jonvic in particular, maybe move to another agency to be –

THE PRESIDENT: Like which agency now they would go to?

Q: Allegedly – [laughs]

THE PRESIDENT: Oh sige. ‘Wag mo na i-allegedly. Just tell me what [inaudible].

Q: Sir, supposedly, you were thinking of putting Benhur Abalos either to the DILG post or the DOJ post.

However, that’s not yet happening. What’s keeping you from actually appointing him to a post when you have already mentioned that you are quite interested in giving him an active capacity in your government again?

THE PRESIDENT: But again, it’s a counterproductive. You know the – what you want to – what you are trying to promote in government is stability and the steadiness of work. And that’s part – that’s an important part of governance.

If you keep moving people around, they have to start learning their job again. And that they – we just don’t have time for that.

And this – the people who are sitting in their particular capacities, be it Cabinet, be it something – some other agency, are – are, as far as I’m concerned, are doing the job that they are asked to do and have gained already the experience that they have learned lessons from.

And to just keep moving people around for no really good reason. It makes no sense to me.

Q: Sir, with regard to the recent happenings in the Senate.

THE PRESIDENT: Oh yes.

Q: Baka puwede na pong makuha ang inyong comment on some of the things that happened yesterday.

First po, sir, reaction po doon lang sa naging maayos ‘yung naging special session po na ipinatawag ninyo kung saan naging bagong Senate President na po si

Senator Sherwin Gatchalian.

And the second one po, may mga bumabatikos po sa pagtalaga kay Senator Escudero bilang presiding judge sa Senate Impeachment Court. Lalo na rin po ay mayroon siyang involvement allegedly doon sa impeachment case ni VP Sara. Parang na-criticize siya before regarding that.

THE PRESIDENT: Second question first. What was the – I’m not sure what the batikos is for Chiz to become the trial manager or whatever [inaudible].

Q: I think when ano during the first impeachment proceedings with VP Sara kung saan po parang maraming nag-criticize na dine-delay ‘yung impeachment trial doon sa forthwith po na provision doon sa Constitution.

THE PRESIDENT: Yeah, but those are opinions. I don’t think that reflects in any way on what – how he will do.

As a matter of fact, the rules that were – the rules that were adopted by the Senate were the rules that Senator Chiz wrote during the last year’s impeachment – when they were handling the last year’s impeachment complaint.

So in terms of his ability to be able to run the trial. I don’t think that’s in doubt.

The – if you remember, the reason that the impeachment trial last year came to a stop was because of the Supreme Court decision. And that had nothing to do with Senator Chiz.

So, let’s go back to the first – let’s go back to the first question.

Q: Sir, okay lang follow-up before we go back to the first question.

THE PRESIDENT: Oo, sige.

Q: Sir, is it safe to say po na you express your support na si Senator Chiz Escudero po ‘yung maging presiding officer doon po sa impeachment ni VP Sara?

THE PRESIDENT: I will support whoever the Senate chooses.

As long as the process that they undertook in making the choice is proper, is legal, is constitutional, then that’s fine with me.

I will definitely – I will definitely do whatever I can to work together with the legislature, with the Senate in particular, to make sure that things go smoothly.

And that we move away from the chaos that we have been seeing in the Senate. And I hope that the new reorganization will achieve that.

Q: ‘Yung reaction na lang po sir, doon sa pagkahalal kay Sherwin Gatchalian bilang bagong SP. And siguro reaction lang po na naging maayos naman ‘yung daloy nung special session po kahapon?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, that is exactly what we have been all hoping for, that things become more orderly, na maging maayos ang takbo ng Senado.

Dahil kung titingnan ninyo, ‘yung ibang –  ‘yung mga ibang priority bills na sinabi natin kung bakit ang special session ay dahil doon. First of all, talagang priority bill ‘yun. That was identified months ago sa LEDAC. Talagang nandiyan na ‘yon.

Pangalawa, karamihan – hindi, lahat doon, tapos na sa House. So, kailangan kunin na ng senado para  maipasa na, para maging batas.

And that’s – that was what we were very worried about.

And of course, the appointments, of course, sa DFA, ‘yung appointments ng mga heneral. All of those were just came to a dead stop noong nagkakagulo.

Noong hindi pumapasok ‘yung mga senador. Hindi sila nagse-session. Ayun na nga, you all know, I don’t need to go through that.

Alam ng lahat ng tao kung ano ‘yung nangyari.

Sana naman, sa ‘paglagay ni Senator Sherwin bilang SP ay mabalik naman tayo sa normal na patakbo ng senado.

And that they can take care of the business of government, the business of legislation, and all these necessary legislation that we listed to show that –

that are priority.

Some of them are from before, some of them are new in response to the oil crisis in the Middle East. Iba-iba pero lahat kailangan.

At lahat eh kailangan na ngayon.

So, with those two elements na tapos na sa House, wala – inaantay na lang  ang Senado.

Pangalawa, nasa gitna tayo ng oil crisis na kailangan ng mga batas na ‘yan eh sana naman mapag-aralan nila, madiskusyunan na nila nang mabuti and we can proceed with the normal conduct of governance.

And before we end, I have an announcement to make.

If a – And I don’t know if people are aware of this, but 24 Filipinos have been in detention in Irkutsk for how many months now? Nine. Nine months.

Wala tayong balita. Hindi natin malaman kung ano na ang kalagayan nila.

As far as we know, hindi naman sila nakasuhan.

So, eh pero wala na – well, hindi natin – wala tayong makuha masyadong information hanggang ngayon.

Noong nag-bilateral meeting kami ni President Putin binanggit ko ito. At nagulat rin siya. Sabi niya, “Hindi ko alam ‘yan. Pag-aaralan namin. Titingnan namin ang nangyayari.”

Noong dinner kagabi, kinausap niya ako, sabi niya, “Nakita na namin ‘yung sitwasyon. We found out where the 24 Filipinos are. We found out what the problem is with their case, with their situation.”

And first of all, he said, they have not been charged with any wrongdoing,

but they have still been kept in detention for nine months.

So, I said as a request especially speaking for the families, kung puwede naman, we can find a way that they be – that we get some information about them, unang-una.

Pangalawa, na makahanap naman tayo ng solution. Siyempre, respetado natin ang batas ng Russia. Respetado natin ang kanilang pamahalaan. Ngunit kung may paraan, sana magawan natin. And nagkaroon ng – ginawan na ng paraan.

Sabi nga – I remember, the last thing he said last night after we were talking about it is he said, “Don’t worry, we will find a way. We will find a way to fix this problem.”

And now, the 24 Filipinos will be released.

They are already for deportation tomorrow by 5 p.m. So, those 24 will be going home back to the Philippines, and back to their families. Okay, alright.

Thank you.

[applause]

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