Czech PM: PH a key partner in Indo-Pacific

PRAGUE – Czech Republic Prime Minister Petr Fiala branded the Philippines as a significant partner in the Indo-Pacific region.

During his bilateral meeting with President Ferdinand ”Bongbong” Marcos Jr., Fiala vowed that the Czech Republic government would help the Philippines in its economic development.

“We see the Philippines as a key partner in the Indo-Pacific region … we are interested in stronger economic and trade nation with your country. We can assist this diversification of your country’s economic model,” he said.

“And I saw in Manila many possibilities for our future cooperation. We discussed cooperation, agriculture, defense, aviation, and energy,” the Prime Minister added.

For his part, Marcos acknowledged Fiala’s strong commitment to the Philippines and the Filipinos, saying that they would continue to pursue and explore various areas of cooperation. 

”We, of course, talked about the defense and security and in that vein, we have just… the Armed Forces of the Philippines, as you know, is in the process of modernization of our capabilities and capacities,” Marcos said.

“We continue to explore also in terms of agriculture, cybersecurity, which is something that we spoke about very briefly, but now we put a little bit more, put a bit more meat on the bones of that initial discussion that we have had,” he added.

To recall, Fiala visited Manila in April 2023 and met with Marcos where they launched the book “Kaibigan-P?átelé: Czech-Philippine Cultural and Diplomatic Dialogue in Malacañang Palace.

The diplomatic relations between the Philippines and the Czech Republic was officially established on October 5, 1973.—AOL, GMA Integrated News