Japanese PM to address PH Congress during official visit

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 1) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is set to address a joint session of the Philippine Congress during his official visit to the country this week.

Kishida will start his two-day visit on Friday, Nov. 3, with a scheduled bilateral meeting with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at the Malacañan Palace.

He will also deliver a speech before Filipino lawmakers at the Batasan Complex in Quezon City, on Saturday at 11 a.m., Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri said.

Reports said Kishida, the first Japanese prime minister to address the Philippine Congress, is expected to talk about his country's next-generation diplomacy towards Southeast Asia.

In a statement on Wednesday, Zubiri said he personally invited Kishida to speak to the Philippine Congress when senators visited Tokyo in April. He was also part of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s delegation to Japan's capital in February.

The statement said it was the Senate leader during the two visits «who broached the idea of the possibility of a Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) with Japan, an enhanced security arrangement.»

Kyodo News earlier quoted sources as saying that during Kishida's visit to Manila, he and Marcos are expected to green light negotiations on a «reciprocal access agreement,» that would facilitate the presence of visiting forces.

Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. last month told reporters the RAA with Japan is being reviewed by the Department of Foreign Affairs and that the agreement can hopefully be signed within the year.

He said the RAA, which would have to be ratified by the Senate as a treaty, would allow the countries to deploy troops to each other’s territory for training and other operations.

Meanwhile, Zubiri added that government officials are expected «to brief Kishida on the progress of Japanese-supported big-ticket infrastructure projects, especially on rail such as the Manila subway.»

He said the last time the Senate and the House of Representatives convened for a state leader's speech was in February 2006 during the visit of former Indian President Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam.