President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. expressed optimism the strong relationship of the Philippines and the United States will continue as the US transitions to a new leadership.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. expressed optimism the strong relationship of the Philippines and the United States will continue as the US transitions to a new leadership.

Speaking to US Vice President Kamala Harris on Tuesday, Marcos reflected on the achievements the two nations attained during the Biden administration.

“The progress that we have made is terribly encouraging and we just hope to build on that and continue to work on what we have begun and continue to stand for our shared values and the rule of international law,” Marcos told Harris.

Marcos highlighted the bilateral relationship with the US in economics, diplomacy, defense and security.

“As is typical with the relationship between the Philippines and the US, it’s on every level, in every facet — on the economic level, on the diplomatic level, and defense and security,” he said.

Harris, in turn, reaffirmed the United States’ support for the Philippines amid China’s continued aggression in the West Philippine Sea.

“It is extremely important to me and to the United States that we reaffirm the commitment to the defense of the Philippines, including in the South China Sea,” she said.

She emphasized the “bipartisan support” of the US Congress and Washington for strengthening ties with the Philippines in security, economic prosperity and people-to-people connections.

Strong trilateral cooperation

Marcos emphasized the results of the trilateral cooperation of the US, Japan and the Philippines as it gained recognition in ASEAN. He noted that the relationship between the three countries strengthened their collective position on pressing issues in the West Philippine Sea.

“As I told President Biden when I spoke to him, I said that I remember ... just before we signed the trilateral agreement in Washington that I said to President Biden that this will change the dynamic of the South China Sea and the Indo-Pacific. And it certainly has done that,” he said.

Harris shared Marcos’ sentiment, stressing that the trilateral cooperation is a “very important way to deepen our economic cooperation and build secured supply chains as well as promote security across the region.”

“I echo the President’s conversation with you about the work that you will do with the next administration in reinforcing the importance of that trilateral cooperation and the critical nature of it to maintain security in the South China Sea,” she added.

Last Monday, President Marcos, US President Joe Biden, and Japanese Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru engaged in a trilateral meeting.

Marcos-Harris meetings

As Biden and Harris will conclude their terms on 20 January, Marcos and Harris looked back on their relationship, especially their meetings.

In 2022, Harris visited Manila in November to reaffirm the US commitment to the defense alliance with the Philippines and strengthen the two nations’ economic relationship. She also went to Palawan — a first for a high-ranking US official.

In 2023, Marcos met with Harris prior to the APEC Conference in San Francisco in November to continue discussions on the situation in the West Philippine Sea.

In the same year, Harris and her husband, Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, hosted Marcos and First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos at the US Naval Observatory, the official residence of the Vice President.

Harris also had a trilateral meeting with then Prime Minister of Japan Fumio Kishida and President Marcos in Jakarta in September 2023.

Biden and Harris have been conducting a series of calls with allied countries before they leave office on 20 January.