President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. said the Philippines would “vigorously pursue collaboration and coordination” with the European Union (EU) to facilitate green technology transfer and cooperation between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and EU, which is critical in the global response to climate change.
The President made this assertion as he delivered the opening remarks as country coordinator of the ASEAN-EU Commemorative Summit in Brussels, Belgium on Wednesday.
“It is a race against time to conserve and prevent habitat and biodiversity loss,” said the President as he lamented how climate change “threatens to radically transform for the worse many vulnerable ASEAN landscapes.”
The President also urged the EU and its member states to continue extending cooperation activities and support for the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity (ACB), which is based in the Philippines.
“We are currently losing huge chunks of our natural resources at a rate difficult to repair and impossible to replenish in our lifetime. The ACB’s work is vital in preserving and growing ASEAN’s rich natural heritage which serves as a main pillar of our culture and our economy,” the President said.
President Marcos also looks forward to closer maritime cooperation between ASEAN and the EU based on the “intersection of priority areas between the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific and the EU Strategy for Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific, underpinned by ASEAN Centrality.”
“Beyond declaring respect and support for UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea) as the legal framework that governs all activities in the oceans and seas, we need to see an effective application of the UNCLOS to address the maritime disputes and geopolitical rivalry in the Indo-Pacific to truly realize the still-distant aspiration for the Indo-Pacific to become a sea of peace and prosperity for us all,” Marcos said.
The chief executive further sought closer bloc-to-bloc relations, especially “at this time of economic recovery from the ravages caused by the pandemic and the current threats on the supply chain.”
President Marcos also expressed hope to see the proposed Philippine-EU Free Trade Agreement move beyond scoping negotiations soon. #
