PBBM’s foreign policy on the right path

Never in the history of the Philippines has our foreign policy been more significant and consequential than it is today. The world has turned many times over, but never have we faced so much danger and instability than what we are seeing today in many parts of the world, including the West Philippine Sea.

Consequently, the role President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is playing and his commitment to regional and global peace, adherence to the rule of law and the efforts to align the definition of our territory and maritime zones according to the tenets of international law will ultimately define the future of our country.

While the Philippines “continuously tries to find ways to de-escalate tensions in contested areas with our counterparts, without compromising our position and our principles,” we recognize that “proper diplomatic channels and mechanisms under rules-based international order” are the only acceptable means of settling disputes. At the same time, we will continue “strengthening our defensive posture, both through developing self-reliance and through partnerships with like-minded states,” the President highlighted in his third State of the Nation Address.

President Marcos has definitely set the country’s foreign policy towards the right path, doing what is best for our national interest, putting into good use available mechanisms such as the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty, the 1998 Visiting Forces Agreement and the 2014 Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement that his predecessors put into place.

This was evident in the recent 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue that took place in Manila – the first one held in the Philippines since it was started in 2012 – between the Philippines and the US that shows the evolution of the relationship between our two countries into what it is today: ironclad, stable and responsive to an “increasingly complex environment” in the region and the world.

As stated in the Joint Statement issued by both sides, the nature of threats in various domains including land, sea, air, space and cyberspace – and the effective responses to such threats – were discussed.

The United States’ commitment in allocating $500 million in military funding to boost