(UPDATE) WASHINGTON, D.C.: The Philippine government hopes to generate about $100 billion in investments across various sectors in the next five to 10 years as a result of the historic three-way summit here with US President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel Romualdez bared this target as he noted that Marcos and his economic managers have been meeting with major players from different sectors such as energy, digital infrastructure, and semiconductor manufacturing.

"The figures that I have been hearing, this may sound a little bit expanded in a way, but we're talking about a hundred billion in investments in the next five to 10 years," Romualdez said in a briefing at the Philippine Embassy on Wednesday.

"This gives you an indication of how much interest there is at this time in investments coming into the country," he added.

The President, Romualdez said, is particularly excited that an energy company, Ultra Safe, has plans of supplying small nuclear power plants to the Philippines.

He said it was important to enhance the country's economic cooperation with Japan and the United States.

"In fact, this is probably on top of the mind of the President because he feels that economic prosperity means economic security for our country," he added.

In a briefing ahead of Marcos' arrival, Romualdez described this week's three-way summit as "momentous and historical."

"It's the first time that we will have a meeting [among] three leaders, two of which are... major allies, the United States and Japan," the ambassador said.

He added that the summit fit in with the President's belief that the challenges in the region could be approached in a multilateral manner.

While it is a given that the leaders would discuss the increasing tension in the South China Sea and their respective country's defense strategies, enhancing economic collaborations will take center stage, Romualdez said.

One topic which could also be brought up is the possibility of forging a free trade agreement (FTA) among the three parties based on the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) for Prosperity blueprint, which brings together the three nations and Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Fiji, India, Indonesia, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

"Our Trade Department, headed by Secretary (Alfredo) Pascual, has been really looking into having a free trade agreement not only with the United States but even with Japan. So, we're looking at that seriously and we have been working with our trade attaché here in pushing for specific free trade agreements," Romualdez said.

Marcos arrived in the US capital Wednesday night (local time) for a two-day working visit.

The Chief Executive said his second visit to Washington, D.C. will build upon his previous meetings with Prime Minister Kishida and US Vice President Kamala Harris in September last year in Jakarta, Indonesia.

"It is mainly an agreement to strengthen the cooperation on the economic front. Of course, security and defense is going to be part of that discussion but nonetheless, I think I can assure everyone that that is not the main intent of this trilateral agreement," Marcos said before departing Manila.

"The main intent of this trilateral agreement is for us to be able to continue to flourish, to be able to help one another, and of course, to keep the peace in the South China Sea and the freedom of navigation in the South China Sea," he added.

The chartered flight from Manila carrying the President and his lean delegation landed at the Joint Base Andrews at 8 p.m. local time.

He will kick off his two-day official visit to the US capital with the historic three-way summit with Kishida and Biden at the White House on Thursday.

A one-on-one meeting with Biden will immediately follow.

US officials said the summit would show support for Manila against China's growing assertiveness in the disputed South China Sea.

Biden's three-way meeting with Kishida and Marcos follows repeated confrontations between Chinese and Philippine vessels in the hotly contested waterway.

"President Marcos is coming under pressure from the PRC's aggressive tactics," a senior US administration official told reporters, using the acronym for the People's Republic of China.

"What you'll see is a clear demonstration of support and resolve from both President Biden and Prime Minister Kishida. We stand shoulder to shoulder with Marcos."

Naval exercises

The three countries are expected to announce new joint naval exercises along with Australia, similar to drills they had in the region at the weekend, officials said.

They are also set to unveil new economic cooperation measures.

China claims almost the entire South China Sea, brushing aside competing claims from several Southeast Asian nations, including the Philippines, and an international ruling that has declared its stance baseless.

The United States has a mutual defense pact with Manila and has repeatedly declared its "ironclad" commitment to defending the Philippines against an armed attack in the South China Sea.

Tensions have become particularly acute around the Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal, a remote reef in the Spratly Islands.

Biden's commitment to the Philippines was "clear" and he had "repeated many times" that Washington's defense treaty applied to the South China Sea, a second US official said.

The trilateral summit is part of Biden's efforts to seal alliances with like-minded nations in a region that both Beijing and Washington consider part of their geopolitical backyard.

They are the latest Asia-Pacific allies to be hosted by Biden, who was joined by Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol at Camp David in August.

Biden has also moved to manage tensions with China, holding a two-hour phone call with President Xi Jinping last week and a face-to-face meeting in San Francisco in November.

On Wednesday, Biden said the major upgrade in defense ties with Japan was "purely defensive" and "not aimed at any one nation or a threat to the region."

But tensions have continued to mount.

Talks are still underway between the Philippines and Japan for a defense pact that would allow the countries to deploy troops on each other's territory.

Manila already has a similar agreement with Australia and the United States.

While in Washington, the President is also slated to meet with various business groups.

He will wrap up his trip with another visit to The Pentagon before he flies back to Manila.

House leaders and members were bullish about the three-way summit, noting that it was a "tacit recognition" of the leadership of Marcos and his foreign policy stance of being a "friend to all and an enemy to none."

Speaker Martin Romualdez said the summit brought the Philippines to the forefront of regional cooperation and diplomacy.

"The outcomes of the trilateral summit affirm our country's commitment to fostering strong and mutually beneficial partnerships with key allies like the United States and Japan," Romualdez said.

Quezon 2nd District Rep. David Suarez said the summit not only symbolizes unity but also underscores the urgent need for global solidarity in preserving the rules-based international system.

House Senior Deputy Speaker Aurelio Gonzales Jr. said the Philippines has gained support from around the world for following a rules-based approach in the West Philippine Sea (WPS).

"We all recognize that the WPS is a vital conduit for global trade, and it should remain that way," Gonzales added.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, RED MENDOZA

Read The Rest at :