The Philippines and the Republic of Paraguay on Monday sealed a visa-waiver agreement for ordinary passport holders and the trade of goods, during Paraguayan President Santiago Peña Palacios’ three-day official visit to the country. The visa-waiver agreement, signed by Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Theresa Lazaro and Paraguayan Minister of Foreign Affairs Rubén Ramírez Lezcano on Monday was witnessed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Paraguayan President Peña. It institutionalizes the mutual provision of visa-free entry privileges for ordinary passport holders to facilitate business, tourism, and people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.

“Complementing the establishment of institutional and commercial linkages is today’s signing of a Visa Waiver Agreement for ordinary passport holders of the Philippines and Paraguay, which the President and I hope will expedite business tourism and people-to-people exchanges between our two countries,” said Marcos during the joint press conference in Malacañang.

“The President and I likewise welcome today’s signing of an MoU on cooperation in the field of diplomatic training between the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Paraguayan Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which will redound to closer engagements between Filipino and Paraguayan diplomats,” he added.

Aside from the visa-waiver agreement, Marcos said the Philippine government welcomed the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement between the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Paraguay’s Investment and Export Network, or Rediex, “a pivotal step in establishing contacts between Philippine and Paraguayan companies.”

Improving trade relations

Marcos said he and Peña held bilateral talks on potential areas of cooperation between the two countries, including in agriculture, trade, and renewable energy.

“I raised the possibility of the Philippines exporting tuna, sardines, milkfish, and other products to Paraguay, which will certainly give a boost to our local industry. And President Peña and I discussed the potential of increasing trade and investment between our two nations, starting with generating awareness and interest among businesses of both sides, with the longer-term objective of identifying and enabling economic and commercial opportunities,” he said.

For his part, Peña said he welcomed the opening of the Philippine market to Paraguayan beef, pork, and poultry since August 2025 which enabled the first shipment to this market.

“This milestone demonstrates the capacity of our productive sector to access one of Asia’s most demanding and dynamic markets, with more than 100-million consumers. We aspire for this trade flow to expand and diversify in a sustained manner, consolidating Paraguay as a reliable supplier of animal protein in Southeast Asia,” he said.

“Likewise, we see significant opportunities to broaden our export offerings in grain, maize, oilseeds, and agro-industrial products in response to the Philippine demand for food security,” Peña added.

On the multilateral level, Peña announced that Paraguay has formally conveyed to the Philippines, in its capacity as Chair of ASEAN, its intention to accede to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation (TAC) in Southeast Asia, reflecting Paraguay’s determination to integrate into the regional dialogue and cooperation system in line with the principles of peace, respect for sovereignty, and the peaceful settlement of disputes that have historically guided Paraguay’s foreign policy. 

“Accession to the TAC is not a symbolic act. It is a strategic declaration that positions Paraguay as an actor committed to stability and multilateralism in the Indo-Pacific,” he said.

Peña said they also aim to strengthen ties between Mercosur and the Asean region, with Paraguay currently holding the pro tempore presidency of Mercosur and the Philippines chairing Asean this year.

Mercosur is a South American regional trade bloc established in 1991 comprising Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay and aimed at promoting free trade, economic integration, and the free flow of goods, people, and currency among member countries, representing the sixth largest economy globally.

“This conversion is not coincidental. It is an opportunity that we must face with determination to advance a more structured dialogue between both regions. We have agreed to explore a roadmap aimed at deepening ties between Mercosur and the Philippines, with a view to laying the foundation for a broader engagement between our two blocs, Mercosur and Asean, in trade, investment, and value chains,” Peña noted.

He reaffirmed Paraguay’s commitment to strengthening the bilateral relations as a strategic partnership, with the two signed agreements further validating their position.