PRESIDENT DUTERTE'S MIDDLE EAST TOUR YIELDS BILATERAL DEALS
Agreements focus on labor, foreign affairs cooperation; presidential spokesman Ernesto Abella says the President was also set to meet with business leaders
President Rodrigo Duterte’s meeting with Saudi Arabia King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud ended with the signing of bilateral deals focusing on labor and foreign affairs cooperation. It is the first time in eight years that a Filipino leader was received in a state visit at the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, where his delegation pitched the Philippines as an investment destination. He also planned to “express appreciation for assistance to Min-danao, specifically on the pursuit of just and lasting peace… discuss closer cooperation on security issues that is terrorism and violent extremism, and to express appreciation for hosting Filipinos in Saudi Arabia and to discuss labor issues confronting overseas Filipino workers.”
President Rodrigo Duterte’s state visit to Saudi Arabia has resulted in the ceremonial signing of three bilateral agreements between the Philippines and the host country.
Photos released by the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) showed that Duterte and Saudi Arabia King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud had a meeting at the latter’s private residence in Rawdhat Jhuraim on Tuesday.
The two leaders then witnessed the signing of agreements on the following: political consultations between Saudi Arabia Ministry of Foreign of Affairs and Department of Foreign Affairs; labor cooperation for general workers recruitment and employment; and cooperation between the Philippine Foreign Service Institute and the Prince Saud Al-Faisal Institute of Diplomatic Studies.
The President is currently on a week-long trip until April 16 for state visits to Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Qatar.
He is expected to depart Saudi Arabia on Wednesday after his scheduled meeting with the Filipino community in Marriott Hotel in Riyadh.
He will then proceed to Manama, Bahrain from April 12 to 14 to meet King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa.
The final leg of his trip will be in Doha, Qatar, from April 14 to 16, to meet with the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani.
In a statement, the Presidential Communications Operations Office said Duterte’s Middle East tour marks the first time in eight years that a Filipino leader was received in a state visit at the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA).
The President thanked the King Salman for hosting Filipino workers in the country. The Saudi king, in turn, thanked President Duterte for the Philippines’ contribution in providing professionals and other skilled workers for the Kingdom.
After the introductions, everyone was offered Arabic coffee before the President and His Majesty were ushered to the lunch room followed by the royal family, Cabinet ministers, and the Philippine delegation.
After the official lunch, Pres- ident Duterte and King Salman were escorted to the venue for the bilateral meeting and signing ceremony.
Speaking with Filipino journalists in the Diplomatic Quarter, Presidential Spokesman Ernesto Abella said the President and the Philippine delegation will pitch the Philippines as an investment destination in meetings with Sau- di’s business leaders.
He said the President would “express appreciation for assistance to Mindanao, specifically on the pursuit of just and lasting peace; explore growth areas in trade and investments; and discuss cooperation on security issues like extremism and the trade in illicit drugs.”