Image: Reuters Berita 24 English - On Monday, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will meet with his Indonesian counterpart, Joko Wid...
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| Image: Reuters |
Berita 24 English - On Monday, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will meet with his Indonesian counterpart, Joko Widodo, as part of a state visit aimed at improving defence and anti-terrorism efforts between the two countries.
Marcos is the son and namesake of a dictator who was overthrown by the people 36 years ago. This trip is his first official trip outside of the Philippines since he won the election by a huge margin in May.
The Philippine press secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles told reporters on Sunday that the two leaders are going to renew a defence and security pact and sign deals on trade, investment, and green energy.
She said that they are likely to talk about issues related to the sea, the border, and fighting terrorism.
Analysts say that there are ties between extremists in the region because there have been suicide bombings in both countries, including on churches, and because Indonesian fighters helped Islamist militants take over Marawi City in the Philippines in 2017.
In an editorial on Monday, the Jakarta Post said that the visit would also give the new president a chance to talk to Widodo about the case of Mary Jane Veloso, a Filipino woman who is on death row in Indonesia for smuggling drugs.
Before he left for Jakarta, Marcos said that Indonesia was one of his country's closest allies. Later on Monday, Marcos and his economic team will meet with business leaders. On Tuesday, they will fly to Singapore.
