This commitment was expressed when Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar and Philippine Foreign Minister Enrique Manalo jointly chaired the 5th Joint Commission on India-Philippines Bilateral Cooperation (JCBC) in New Delhi on Thursday (29/6) .

During the meeting, FM Jaishankar highlighted the importance of stabilizing the Indo-Pacific region, respecting the rule of law and promoting inclusive multilateralism.

“All cooperation is important, especially in the defense sector. India and the Philippines are democratic countries in Asia which have many similarities and similar views on global and regional issues,” Jaishankar said , Quoted by Commercial standardMonday (3/7).

Responding to this, Foreign Minister Manalo said his country considers India a priority partner and he hopes that the two countries can further expand this partnership.

“We attach great importance to our relations with India. “Since the first JCBC, a number of key areas of cooperation have been discussed and, in fact, action taken, and we hope to explore this further in our discussions today,” he said.

According to him, since the two countries opened their respective consulates general after independence, the Philippines has seen progress in its relations with India, and he is optimistic that in the future, these cooperative relations can become even narrower. This year, the two countries will celebrate the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations.