MANILA – President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos are heading to Brunei Darussalam and Singapore next week, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said.
According to DFA spokesperson Teresita Daza, Marcos and his wife will head to Brunei for a state visit, bilateral meetings with the Brunei Sultanate and meet the Filipino community in Bandar Seri Begawan.
“The President will be traveling to Brunei on [the] 28th to 29th of May to undertake his first state visit to the Sultanate. While in Brunei, the President will be meeting with His Majesty, the Sultan, who is also the Head of State,” Daza said at a Palace press briefing on Friday.
During his bilateral meeting with th e Brunei Sultanate, President Marcos is expected to talk about economic cooperation since Brunei is “a powerhouse in terms of energy and will also serve as good market for Philippine goods.”
“I can inform you that the MOUs that we are working with the Brunei side would include priority areas ranging from agriculture to food security, maritime cooperation, tourism,” Daza said.
Daza also said there would be business forums and meetings where Marcos is expected to promote trade and investment relations between the Philippines and Brunei.
From Brunei, the Chief Executive and his wife will go straight to Singapore as the former is delivering a keynote address in the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) Shangri-La Dialogue on May 31.
“The dialogue will provide a good platform for defense ministers, military chiefs, government officials, and security experts around the world to discuss regional and global security challenges,” she said.
Daza also said President Marcos will meet Singapore’s new Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and President Tharman Shanmugaratnam at the sidelines of the dialogue./PN
