United States' Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Sec. Lloyd Austin III made a courtesy visit to Philippines' President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday, Jully 30, at the Malacanang.
The meeting happened before the pair attended the 2+2 US-Philippines Ministerial Dialogue during that same day.
"I’m always very happy that these communication lines are very open so that all the things that we are doing together, in terms of our alliance, in terms of the specific context of our situation here in the West Philippine Sea and in the Indo-Pacific are continuously examined and re-examined so we are agile in terms of our responses," President Marcos said.
Blinken mentioned that the 4th US-Philippines Ministerial Dialogue as 'genuinely historic'.
"This is the first time that the Philippines has hosted our two-plus-two. It’s I think really evidence of a steady drumbeat, a very high-level engagements between our countries that are covering the full range of issues and opportunities that bring us together, not only security but also economic, and we’re truly grateful for this partnership," Blinken said.
The two US officials met with their Philippine counterparts: Foreign Affairs Sec. Enrique Manalo and Gilberto Teodoro Jr. during the dialogue that seeks to further enhance the alliance between the two countries.
