7 October 2003, ASEAN Summit, Bali, Indonesia – President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee today agreed to forge closer ties, when they held a bilateral meeting at the sidelines of the 9th ASEAN Summit in Bali, according to Foreign Affairs Secretary Blas F. Ople.

“Both leaders acknowledged that in spite of the many common interests and values shared by the Philippines and India, much can still be done in terms of forging closer ties,” Secretary Ople said.  “The President pointed out that there is a large Indian community in the Philippines and that this could be a basis for enhancing relations between our two countries,” he added.

To ensure greater people-to-people exchanges, President Arroyo told Prime Minister Vajpayee that the Philippines will be rationalizing its visa rules to make it easier for legitimate Indian businessmen and investors to travel to the Philippines.

“The Prime Minister expressed his appreciation for this decision and said that he was positive that this would encourage greater contact and exchanges between businessmen and investors,” the Secretary said.

During the meeting, President Arroyo and Prime Minister Vajpayee agreed that the Philippines and India share many basic values, including the adherence to democracy and peaceful change.

“The President told Prime Minister Vajpayee that the peaceful revolutions in the Philippines, namely EDSA I and II, were inspired by the peaceful and non-violent struggles of Mahatma Gandhi,” Secretary Ople said.

“Prime Minister Vajpayee said that in addition to democratic ideals, India and the Philippines share a common desire to defeat international terrorism, pointing out that both countries have been victims of terrorism,” Secretary Ople said, adding that both leaders agreed to explore ways of cooperating in the war against terrorism.

Energy Secretary Vicente Perez informed Prime Minister Vajpayee that his Department was studying the use of natural gas to fuel the passenger buses in the Philippines.

“Secretary Perez said that he was impressed by India’s success on converting its diesel buses to clear-air buses and said that he will be exploring ways on how to adopt this technology to the Philippines.  Prime Minister Vajpayee agreed to cooperate in this area.  I think this would be an important area of cooperation since we would be saving the environment and since we are self-sufficient in natural gas,” Secretary Ople said.

“Prime Minister Vajpayee also expressed interest in investing in developing our railroad systems.  India has vast experience in railroad building and railroad systems that are particularly suited for developing countries.  The President warmly welcomed India’s interest in this area.  I think that this is another area where we will be able to help build our basic transport infrastructure and it is another area where I intend to explore as we proceed to build stronger relations with India,” Secretary Ople said. END.