His Excellency Ambassador Ryuichiro Yamazaki,
The Honorable Secretary of Tourism, Joseph “Ace” Durano,
My colleagues in the Department of Foreign Affairs,
Distinguished guests,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Good morning.

Genuine friendship profits from the passage of time, as relationships are fortified and interaction enhanced through mutual respect and understanding.

Today we celebrate the enduring ties of friendship between the Philippines and Japan as we officially begin preparations for the commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations between our countries next year with the launching of the Steering Committee of the Philippine-Japan Friendship Year.

We recall the meaningful roots that underpin our relations even as we reaffirm today both countries’ commitment to bring that friendship and cooperation to a higher level.

We can mark a number of political milestones in our relations, beginning with the visit of Prime Minister Nobusuke Kishi to the Philippines in 1957. This was soon followed by the visit of President Carlos P. Garcia to Japan in 1958. Political relations have since been characterized by high-level exchanges of visits, articulating the importance of the bilateral relationship between the Philippines and Japan.

We look forward to the commemoration of the golden anniversary of Philippine-Japan friendship as another important opportunity to underscore the significance of our relations.

We can likewise emphasize Japan’s vital role as a development partner of the Philippines, such as its Official Development Assistance.

The Philippine-Japan Friendship Highway, spanning 2,100 kilometers of the entire archipelago, is one of those enduring legacies. Built in the 1970s and continuously rehabilitated to this day, it continues to contribute to the national growth by facilitating the movement and flow of people, goods and services. Indeed, the Philippine-Japan friendship highway is a fitting symbol of how important bilateral cooperation is in the full integration and progress of a nation.

Technical Assistance and Cooperation is also an area where both the Philippines and Japan continue to derive mutual benefits.

The Philippines recognizes that people are at the core of development. Building the capabilities of our human resources on the ground is, therefore, indispensable for development to take root and flourish. With the support of partners like Japan, the Philippines envisions human resource and institutional development to dovetail current efforts aimed at addressing physical development imperatives.

And as we work at enhancing human resources and institutions, we likewise look forward to a re-intensification of our people-to-people relations, building goodwill and reinforcing friendship and cooperation between our peoples.

Japanese government scholarship programs have been made available to Filipinos, allowing them to travel to Japan, understand its culture, broaden academic horizons and build expertise in chosen fields of study. Some of the alumni of these programs are now top government officials, including my predecessor and now Ambassador to Japan, Domingo Siazon, Jr.

We look forward to reinforcing these ties with more opportunities for contact and interaction, not only through these formal exchanges, but likewise through tourism, investment and of course, trade.

Along this line, I am hopeful that the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA) would be concluded soon. The JPEPA, which provides a framework to liberalize trade in goods and services and facilitate investments, will help consolidate bilateral economic cooperation.

Nearly five decades after normalization of diplomatic ties, the Philippines and Japan are now, poised for deeper engagement as allies in bilateral and multilateral for a. In particular, we welcome the holding of the East Asia Summit that will further our common goals for a more stable, secure and prosperous region for all its peoples.

I am confident that the Philippines and Japan shall continue to shape our individual futures which has now become increasingly interlinked—if not shared—by cooperating on matters of joint concerns while resolving, to our mutual satisfaction, any outstanding issues.

With our deeply-set roots, shared experiences and our commitment to further build on our relationship, we indeed look forward to the future flourishing of what is rightly described as a golden friendship.

Thank you very much and good afternoon.