President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. expressed the government’s gratitude to Singapore on Thursday for helping the Philippines during the onslaught of Severe Tropical Storm Kristine.

“The Philippines sends our heartfelt gratitude and we look forward to deepening our ties and creating even more ways to support each other across the region,” President Marcos said.

The President talked via phone with Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.

He said Singapore’s prompt assistance made a significant difference for many Filipinos in hardest-hit areas.

“We discussed sustaining this partnership—from humanitarian aid to tackling climate challenges—all within the framework of ASEAN cooperation,” the President added.

Singapore was one of four Southeast Asian countries that aided the Philippines following the devastation of Kristine.

It sent a military aircraft to the Philippines on October 26.

The aircraft was used to transport non-food relief items from the Office of the Civil Defense (OCD) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to Naga City.

In June 2023, the Philippines and Singapore signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief, which took effect in the same year.

The Philippines and Singapore established diplomatic relations on May 16, 1969.

Aside from Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Brunei Darussalam helped the Philippines.

Indonesia provided an H225M Caracal and an MI-17-V5 Helicopter. Malaysia sent a Eurocapter EC-725 and Brunei Darussalam dispatched a C-295 aircraft and two S-70i helicopters. |PND