President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, along with the Philippine delegation, arrived at Maharlika Presidential Hangar in Villamor Air Base, Pasay City late Monday evening, 20 November 2023, after attending the 30th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting (AELM) in San Francisco, California, and visiting Los Angeles, California, and Honolulu, Hawaii.
In his arrival speech, Marcos shared that he had separate meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Peruvian President Dina Boluarte, US Vice President Kamala Harris, and US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken on the APEC sidelines.
Marcos also emphasized the productivity of the APEC summit discussions, highlighting innovation, resilience, sustainability, and inclusiveness as overarching themes. He underscored the commitment to strengthen cooperation in addressing common economic and security challenges among member economies.
Additionally, he announced agreements with US companies to embrace advanced technologies, including a partnership between DOST and ATMO for an AI-powered weather forecasting system aimed at enhancing the Philippines' resilience to climate change.
The President also announced the visit of a high-level US presidential trade and investment mission in March 2024 and that the Philippines will co-host the 2024 Indo-Pacific Forum.