Since becoming Secretary of Foreign Affairs, I have not appeared before any press club except the MOPC.

And tonight, less than a year later, this is the second time I am speaking before this venerable institution.

To me, an MOPC invitation is always a rare honor which I accept with alacrity.

Eyewitness to the unfolding of Philippine history

I am pleased—immensely pleased and honored—to be asked to celebrate with you your club’s 60th anniversary.

You were present 60 years ago
     —  when an independent Philippine state rose from the ashes of war
     —  when next to Warsaw, Manila was the most devastated and ravaged capital city in the world.
     —  when we helped to found the United Nations at that time in 1945 with 50 states including the Commonwealth of the Philippines which since then has multiplied
          almost four times to the present membership of 191 states
     — and when the battle-lines of the Cold War were drawn around a bi-polar world.

Today, technology and communication have made the world smaller. But globalization has paradoxically expanded the frontiers of our foreign relations. These are symbolized by the more than seven million Filipinos—nearly one-tenth of all our people—who live and work overseas.

You have also seen—and reported—the dramatic changes in the Philippines itself.  By reporting domestic developments, you provide a window through which the rest of the world sees us.

Today, the MOPC bears witness to the government’s determination to nurture—and to strengthen—the democratic institutions and processes established in our Constitution and laws as a mature and law-abiding democracy.

Synergy of domestic and foreign policy

As an extension of domestic policy, foreign policy faces complicated challenges when political problems disturb stability at home.

Fortunately, this truism has not happened in our case. The lively political debate or “noises of democracy” engaging some of our people has so far done little to deter the pursuit of our foreign-policy objectives.

Rather than being adversely affected by events roiling Metro Manila, our foreign policy has actually helped to minimize the destabilizing effects of recent domestic events.

The President’s foreign-policy concerns

This unexpected outcome in the interplay between domestic and foreign policy we can attribute largely to the President’s leadership and steady hands on the wheel in the conduct of foreign policy.

Indeed Mrs. Arroyo’s leadership on specific issues of global importance has laid the foundations for a strong foreign policy.

President Arroyo’s foreign policy fully supports these strategic issues:

     · Peace-building
     · Inter-faith cooperation and dialogue
     · Checking the escalating price of oil
     · Debt relief through debt-for-development swaps
     · The protection of migrant workers, and
     · The war on terror.

All of these issues bear heavily on our own national interests.

And these issues happen to be the country’s core concerns when the President takes part in the United Nations Summit this September including the Presidency of the Security Council.

Messages of support in the midst of political events at home

The President’s leadership on these issues is recognized by the international community -- in ASEAN, in APEC, in ASEM, in the Group of 77 and in the OIC

And this recognition has helped shape the international community’s confidence in the President’s leadership and domestic mandate.

This was evident when we received warm messages of support for the President’s Administration from foreign governments in the context of recent political developments here at home.

I would also say the quality of our foreign policy results from the dedication, the hard work and the team play of the men and women of the Department of Foreign Affairs.

From the beginning of her term in 2001 and consistently thereafter the President has called the DFA’s professionals the “best and the brightest” in government; and together with the President I feel honored to be working with them.

Building peace at home and in the world

In recent months, we have intensified our diplomatic efforts to enhance national stability by negotiating honorable peace with our Muslim brothers and some radical insurgents.

Hence we work with the (OIC) Organization of the Islamic Conference to ensure the successful implementation of the 1996 peace agreement with the MNLF.

With individual OIC members we are also working to conclude a peace agreement with the MILF.

In our efforts to end the Communist insurgency, we have help from the European Union and Norway, which is hosting our talks with the NDF (National Democratic Front) and the NPA.

And we are tapping our sources of foreign assistance to bring development aid—primarily in basic education, primary health care and livelihood programs—to the conflict- and post-conflict areas of Mindanao and Sulu.

In Yemen last month—at the meeting of OIC’ foreign ministers—I received reiterations of support for our peace process as well as our bid for observer status in the Conference.

We are also playing a modest but fairly - important role in building peace in the world.

As you know, we occupy a non-permanent seat in the UN Security Council for the years 2005-06.

That seat enables us to help deal with situations and threats to peace and security in many parts of the world.

As a member of the UN’s multilateral force, we continue to maintain peacekeeping troops in Haiti, Liberia, East Timor, Kosovo, Afghanistan, Sudan and the Ivory Coast.

During our presidency of the Security Council last year, we presided over the adoption of Security Council Resolution 1546—which calls on all United Nations members to work together to build a secure, a stable, and a progressive Iraq.  This resolution was approved unanimously by the Security Council. Members of the Council and UN Secretary General Kofi Annan in fact lauded the Philippine presidency for bringing back unity to Council and the UN to the fore of multilateral diplomacy.

A secure Iraq is an important cornerstone of a stable Middle East, a region which is home to over one and a half million Filipinos.

Interfaith cooperation in the United Nations

Like many other nations, the Philippines has seen the hope and strength that cooperation and dialogue among religious faiths can give to efforts at building peace.

To isolate extremists who advocate terrorism in the name of religion, the Philippines last November offered the General Assembly a resolution—which it accepted by acclamation—to promote interfaith cooperation and dialogue as a way of resolving civil conflicts.

Last month, I chaired, at the United Nations, the first fruit of that Philippine Resolution—a historic Conference on Interfaith Cooperation for Peace.

The Conference—the first of its kind since the birth of the world organization—was unprecedented in terms of sectarian and secular collaboration.

In her message to that Conference, President Arroyo said that interfaith cooperation has proven crucial in our country’s own search for peace and that, “in sharing our experience and in promoting interfaith cooperation, we hope to contribute to building peace throughout the world.”

Checking the rising price of oil

President Arroyo was also among the first world leaders to raise the alarm—and to call for global cooperation and solution —in checking the price of oil which was US $3 per barrel during the period 1958 - 1972 and has in recent years and months soared beyond its historical levels.

At the Asia-Africa Summit in Jakarta last April, the President rallied the developing countries to collective action—to prevent the economic crisis that unsustainable levels in crude oil prices could set off.

We continue to pursue this outcome vigorously together with other countries and regions —particularly in bilateral meetings with the governments of the oil-producing countries.

Debt for development

On the issue of debilitating world debts the Philippines is proposing to the United Nations, the rich countries, and the international lenders debt reduction as well as debt conversion initiatives.

The rich G-8 countries—as we know—have just cancelled the multilateral debts of the 38 most-heavily-indebted poorest countries.

In the context of the UN’s Millennium Development Goal to halve global poverty by 2015, the President has called for debt-for-development swaps for other debtor countries like the Philippines.

On instructions from the President I proposed at the Summit of the Group of 77 in Qatar last month debt for development conversions beyond the 38 most heavily indebted poorest countries (HIPC).

I also delivered to the UN Secretary General President Arroyo’s letter to make the proposal a priority agenda of the UN General Assembly.

To Paul Wolfowitz—the new President of the World Bank, who is an old friend of the Philippines, I discussed the concept of the President’s proposal for serious consideration by the World Bank.

Protection of Overseas Filipinos

The protection of overseas Filipinos is another primary concern of our foreign relations.

The depth of the President’s commitment to the welfare of Filipinos overseas was best articulated by Robert Tarongoy after he had gained his freedom and returned to his family.

Said Robert Tarongoy of President Arroyo:

“I owe you my life.  If you had abandoned me I would not be here with my family right now… Thank you Madame President for helping me and giving moral support to my family while I was gone.”

As with Robert Tarongoy - and with Angelo dela Cruz and Angelito Nayan- the President never hesitated with her clear instructions to the DFA to spare no effort to secure their release and save their lives.

At this point, allow me to recognize those who spared no efforts to secure the release of the three (3) hostages.

They are in this hall – let me introduce each of them:
     — Undersecretary Rafael Seguis
     — Undersecretary Jose Brillantes
     — Ambassador Roy Cimatu
     — our Charge d’Affaires in Iraq, Eric Endaya
     — our Ambassador to Pakistan, Jorge Arrizabal
     — and our Labor Attaché in Baghdad, Angelo Jimenez.

In their unselfish efforts, these diplomats risked their lives time and time again. Indeed, it can be said of them greater love than this no man hath…

They have our thanks and the thanks of a grateful nation.

The Philippine part in the war on terror

Our success in apprehending and in prosecuting terrorists in the Philippines has been matched by our efforts at leading multilateral efforts to organize cooperation in the campaign against terror.

The Philippines chairs APEC’s Counterterrorism Task Force, as well as the UN Security Council’s Counterterrorism Committee.

And we continue to build partnerships with other states—to share information and intelligence and to enlarge our mutual capacity to counteract terror.

President Bush in his speech before the US National Defense University last March said:

 “We’re more secure because the Philippines new Anti-Terrorism Task Force has helped capture more than a dozen terrorist suspects….”

As pointed out in our op-ed page article in the Asian Wall Street Journal last May, we are working with our neighbors and many other countries to rid our nation of terrorists‚ and to do all that is possible to ensure the Philippines is not used as a training camp by international terrorists.

Three-pillar framework of our diplomacy

On all of these foreign-policy concerns, the President has provided us with the three pillar framework for our foreign policy.

These are political diplomacy, economic diplomacy, and service diplomacy.

Political diplomacy focuses on preserving— and enhancing—the national security and our other political interests.

Economic diplomacy seeks to promote our economic security—by mobilizing external resources for our country’s economic and social development.

And service diplomacy has for its core the protection of the rights and promotion of the welfare of Filipinos overseas.

These foreign-policy pillars reinforce each other. They are inseparable in our diplomatic practice.

At the edge of three empires: the United States, Japan and China

This same kind of leadership vision guides Philippine relations with the three states of importance to us: China, Japan, and the United States.

President Arroyo has pointed out that these three powers together have a “determining influence on the security and the economic evolution of East Asia” and the larger Asia-Pacific region.

Inarguably, the United States is the dominant military, economic and political power in our time.  It is also our strategic ally and historical friend.

With the United States, we are working to build up our defense capabilities—particularly our capability to fight terror.

Trade and investment cooperation is the most dynamic dimension of our partnership with the United States.

In 2004, total bilateral trade was US$13.6 billion—with the Philippines enjoying a positive balance of almost US$500 million.

The United States accounted for 17 percent of our total foreign trade of US$79 billion.

The more-than-two-million Filipinos in the United States not only symbolize the depth of our relationship. They also represent family ties that link our two countries inseparably and inextricably in unique bonds of affection and friendship across the Pacific. As one manifestation of this bond, more than 500 Filipino-Americans from various states and cities arrived last week with our Consuls General and Ambassador to visit and tour the country.

As for Japan—the second-largest economy—it is our single-biggest market for both products and services.

It is also a proven partner of Philippine development—being our largest source of Official Development Assistance.

Japan buys 16 percent of all our exports and supplies 20 percent of all our imports.

In 2003, it contributed 26 percent of all our foreign direct investment.

Our two countries are currently reviewing their landmark pact—the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement.

This Agreement promotes the free flow of goods, persons, services and capital between our two countries.

Meanwhile, China is resurgent.

This year marks the thirtieth anniversary of Philippine-China diplomatic relations.

During President Hu Jintao’s State Visit, our two countries signed 14 agreements, involving at least US$1 billion in Chinese direct investments— US$700 million in concessional loans—and US$25 million in technical grants.

What could become the defining element in Philippine-China relations is the agreement by their national oil companies to conduct—jointly—marine seismic undertaking for oil and gas resources in the South China Sea: an undertaking in which they are being joined by Vietnam.

Thus from a field of conflict, together with China and Vietnam, we are now in the process of converting the area into a zone of cooperation, development – and peace.

Always in the national interest

Under the leadership of President Arroyo, Philippine foreign policy will always be responsive—both to the realities of our times and to our country’s needs and interests.

But above all, our foreign policy’s ultimate guiding principle will at all times remain constant. And that is the lodestar of national interest.

To quote the Constitution: In its relations with other states, the paramount consideration shall be “national sovereignty, territorial integrity, national interest and the right to self determination.”  END.
 
 
 
 
 

/epa