Marcos off to US today for APEC Summit

PRESIDENT Marcos Jr. is set to leave today for the United States to attend the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit 2023 in San Francisco, where he will push for the use of clean energy and food security, among others.

Before returning to Manila to the November 20, the President will proceed to Hawaii to visit the Indo-Pacific Command headquarters.

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Marcos, at the APEC Summit which will start on November 15, will highlight the need to invest more in clean energy to protect the environment while ensuring energy security and sufficiency.

The President is also expected to highlight the Philippines’ experience during the COVID-19 pandemic and push for deeper cooperation in health and modernizing health systems, and to ensure health professionals are recognized and provided their needs.

He will also push for cooperation in food security, particularly on research and development, innovation and equity, and inclusivity to benefit small farmers, and in climate action given the urgent need to be resilient to climate change.

On the sidelines of the summit, the President is expected to hold meetings with other leaders as well as meet with some American business leaders. Details are still being finalized.

Marcos is also scheduled to meet with the Filipino community in San Francisco before he proceeds to Los Angeles on November 17 where he is also expected to meet with members of the business and Filipino communities.

He will fly to Hawaii on November 18, and meet with the Filipino community in Honolulu.

The President will also visit the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for security studies, and the Indo-Pacific Command headquarters while in Hawaii.

The Marcos family was exiled in Hawaii in 1986 following the ouster of the President’s father and namesake, Ferdinand E. Marcos, through the “People Power Revolution.”