The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Wednesday, April 26, assured that the “excellent rapport” built by President Rodrigo Roa Duterte with the leaders of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) will make the country’s Chairmanship of the ASEAN a success.

“Si Presidente po ano, prior to chairing the summit, he went the rounds of the ASEAN member states, traditional po ‘yun ano, to introduce himself and to build rapport. And ang masasabi ko po is that there is an excellent rapport between the President and the other ASEAN leaders. And I’m sure that rapport will help ensure the success of his chairmanship,” Acting DFA Spokesperson Robespierre Bolivar said in a media briefing held at Conrad Manila in Pasay City.

“We have started the formal meetings today. As we speak, the Committee of Permanent Representatives (CPR) is meeting at the PICC,” Bolivar continued.

The basic task of CPR is to prepare the groundwork for the ASEAN Summit, which will open on Saturday, April 29.

“So anything that needs to be ironed out will have to be ironed out at the CPR,” Bolivar said, adding that the Senior Officials and Ministerial Meetings on April 27 and 28, respectively, were all preparatory to the Summit.

As for the Chairman’s Statement, Bolivar told the press that it is still in a draft form, and the final version will be issued after the Leaders’ Meeting on Saturday.

“So there’s usually some sort of an outline that is prepared. Some elements, some key elements that pertain to issues which are normally discussed during these kinds of meetings, during summits and ministerials,” the acting DFA chief said.

“And it’s usually the role of the Chair in consultation with the ASEAN Secretariat to prepare such a draft. And over the course of the days leading up to the summit to consider the comments, the views of the other ASEAN member states to try to come up with a statement that really encapsulates the consensus of ASEAN,” Bolivar concluded.###PCO-Content