{"id":234066,"date":"2019-10-10T00:07:04","date_gmt":"2019-10-10T04:07:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/?p=234066"},"modified":"2019-10-10T00:07:04","modified_gmt":"2019-10-10T04:07:04","slug":"ph-to-take-ties-with-korea-further-forward-upward-locsin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/2019\/10\/10\/ph-to-take-ties-with-korea-further-forward-upward-locsin\/","title":{"rendered":"PH to take ties with Korea \u2018further, forward, upward\u2019: Locsin"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Locsin lauded the intensified engagements between the two countries in defense modernization and capacity building, which “feeds into our aspirations for shared peace, stability” in the East Asian region. (File Photo<\/a>: @teddyboylocsin\/Twitter<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

MANILA<\/strong>\u00a0— Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. reaffirmed to strengthen bilateral ties between the Philippines and South Korea, as both countries celebrate 70 years of diplomatic relations with each other.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs we celebrate the Republic of Korea\u2019s National Day and 70 years of fruitful cooperation and friendship, we reaffirm the determination of our government and people to work with the government of South Korea in taking our friendship further, forward, and upward,\u201d Locsin said in his speech during the reception of the National Day and Armed Forces Day of the Republic of Korea at the Makati Shangri-La, Manila on Tuesday evening.<\/p>\n

Locsin lauded the intensified engagements between the two countries in defense modernization and capacity building, which \u201cfeeds into our aspirations for shared peace, stability\u201d in the East Asian region.<\/p>\n

He also recognized the Philippine veterans\u2019 push for freedom and democracy, as they were among the first to assist South Korea in the Korean War.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe join our Korean friends in marking Armed Forces Day. We honor the service and sacrifice of our men and women in uniform. Philippine-ROK relations were solidified with mortal mixed with blood and brotherhood,\u201d Locsin said.<\/p>\n

\u201cToday, 70 years after we forged diplomatic relations, it gratifies us to see Philippine-Korean ties continue to grow, nurtured by the same values that we ardently defended,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

South Korean Ambassador to the Philippines Han Dong-man likewise thanked the Filipino soldiers for their contributions during the Korean war from 1950 to 1953.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe reiterate our deep gratitude. Korea will not enjoy this democracy and economic prosperity without their sacrifice, and dedication. For the past 70 years, Korea and the Philippines have enjoyed an excellent relationship,\u201d he said in his speech.<\/p>\n

He said South Korea pledges to boost contributions to the Philippine economy by expanding trade and foreign investment inflows, as well as bringing in more tourists.<\/p>\n

\u201cApproaching the conclusion of our new bilateral trade agreement, which is poised to be signed by the end of November on the outstanding leadership of our two presidents, I\u2019m confident this bilateral deal will further enhance our ties and both our economies,\u201d Han said.<\/p>\n

He also said that whenever he meets with South Korean businessmen, he urges them to \u201cinvest, invest, invest in the Philippines and President (Rodrigo) Duterte\u2019s \u2018Build, Build, Build\u2019 program.\u201d<\/p>\n

South Korea is the Philippines\u2019 fourth-largest trading partner, with total trade reaching USD15.6 billion in 2018, Locsin said.<\/p>\n

Last year, Korean visitors to the Philippines totaled 1.6 million and Han pledged to the President to increase the volume.<\/p>\n

\u201cI made a promise to President Rodrigo Roa Duterte to bring up this number to 2 million per year during my term,\u201d Han said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

MANILA\u00a0— Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. reaffirmed to strengthen bilateral ties between the Philippines and South Korea, as both …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":230163,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16,95],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-234066","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news","category-news-ph","mauthors-philippine-news-agency"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/234066","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/33"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=234066"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/234066\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":234068,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/234066\/revisions\/234068"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/230163"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=234066"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=234066"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=234066"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}