Australia-Philippines Defence Ministers' Meeting

SUBJECTS: Australia-Philippines Defence Ministers’ Meeting; Remembrance Day

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER, RICHARD MARLES: Well, Gilberto and your team, you are very honoured guests in Parliament House. It really is a joy- this is not our first meeting, we've met many time – and I have met you in the Philippines, but it's really, really wonderful to have our first meeting here in Australia, and to meet in Parliament House. We do so at a time when, as we both know, the world is unpredictable and uncertain, where the rules based order around the world is under pressure. But it is under pressure in our part of the world, and particularly close proximity to the Philippines. Areas like the South China Sea, East China Sea are profoundly important for Australia in terms of the passage of our trade. But we also know the way in which the rules based order has been under pressure in the West Philippines Sea. We have now conducted more Maritime Cooperative Activities between our two countries over what two years, which is just a fantastic tempo of activity. That right there is a demonstration, I think of the transformation of our relationship and the closeness that we have as two countries. But it makes sense, because we have a huge people-to-people connection with a large Filipino community, which has been in Australia for a long time. So in that sense, the Philippines has always been very close friends, but now there really is a strategic dimension to our relationship. We are two democracies with shared values, appreciation of the rule of law, both at home and internationally, and a determination to promote the global rules based order around the world and in our region. All of that means that we are more strategically aligned today than we have ever been before. I'm just really thrilled with the progress of the relationship over the last couple of years. And as I said, it's a pleasure, it’s a real honour to have you Gilberto here in Australia.

PHILIPPINE SECRETARY OF NATIONAL DEFENSE, HON GILBERTO C TEODORO JR: Thank you so much Richard. And it is indeed an honour to be here for the inaugural Defence Ministers’ Meeting. And, it so happened yesterday it was Remembrance Day. We were able to, my team and I were able to pay our respects and our tribute to the heroism all Australians who sacrificed their lives for democracy and for freedom. And it was also very touching in Tacloban City for the unveiling of a marker where we’re honouring the Australian volunteers- actually it was men and boys who formed part of the small boat squadron of the US forces that landed in Tacloban. And I saw the reaction of the families, they were very emotional, and brought closure to their quest to have the participation of their relatives memorialized. And I think that that brings home to a lot of Filipinos affection and the people-to-people ties that we have. And coming off from what you stated, that the world is indeed volatile and unpredictable, all of us who share the same values, who strengthen our relationships to form bedrocks of stability amidst the sea of volatility and unpredictability. Our people deserve no less. The world deserves no less. And we are very, very happy that our relationship with Australia, bilaterally and in multilateral engagements, has been tremendous the past few years. It is in no doubt because of the leadership of the Deputy Prime Minister here, and his team, and other diplomats on both sides. I believe the reason also that this relationship has sped up so quickly, it's because it was a deep, deeply believed need the need to be expressed, and the timing was because of the challenges that the Philippines has met in the past few years in the West Philippine Sea. But in other iterations, it would have to evolve that way anyway, because much as we would want a stable international order, there will be those that have flaunt it for whatever reason, and it is our responsibility to our constituencies and to the rest of the world to leave our mark, stability and adherence to international law and cherishing the freedoms that we enjoy which others do not.

ENDS