AUSTRALIA-PHILIPPINES’ FRIENDSHIP: THE BEST IS YET TO COME
It’s Australia Day in the Philippines! What a time to celebrate this historic bilateral relationship. The past year, 2023, was full of milestones building up this important bond. In September, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. elevated their nations’ relationship to a Strategic Partnership. By doing this, both leaders signified their shared commitment to work together, so they can create a stable, peaceful, and prosperous region.
Quickly following this, the sixth Philippines-Australia Ministerial Meeting took place in October. At this meeting, Australia’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Trade Minister Don Farrell engaged with the Philippines’ Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo and Trade and Industry Secretary Alfredo Pascual in Adelaide, Australia. Together, they agreed on a practical plan to move nations’ Strategic Partnership forward, including new cooperation in trade, defense, maritime security, and green energy.
Ahead of the inking of this partnership, Australia and the Philippines had their largest joint training activity in August— involving six ships, multiple aircraft and more than 2,000 defense personnel—in Palawan and Zambales.
Connected to this, the Australian and Philippine armed forces, in November, conducted the inaugural Maritime Cooperative Activity in the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines. These activities highlighted both nations’ shared commitment to exercising freedom of navigation and overflight consistent with international law.
Just as remarkable, Australia’s Southeast Asia Economic Strategy was launched last year. Under this long-term plan, Australia and the Philippines will work closer together to realize the commercial potential between the two countries and the rest of the region. Watch this space: a lot of exciting things are developing, including the recently signed agreement to boost fintech cooperation, as well as a series of two-way business missions between Australia and the Philippines.
All these developments have brought this bilateral relationship to its highest point in history, prompting Australian Ambassador HK Yu to say, “this year’s Australia Day celebration in the Philippines feels more special to me and my fellow Australians than ever before.”
For Australians, today is a time to reflect on the stories that have shaped modern Australia. Their story began a long time ago, in fact. For at least 65,000 years, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have lived in the great southern continent that we now call Australia. Indigenous Australians have been the land’s traditional owners and custodians of a vibrant culture—the oldest living culture in the world—that continues to enrich the whole country.
Did you know that over 400,000 Filipinos who now call Australia home? Australia is proud to be the most successful multicultural society on Earth: one in four Australians are migrants (just like their Ambassador), and almost half of all Aussies have a parent born overseas. For the newest arrivals, Australia Day is a particularly memorable occasion, as it is when local communities across the country hold Citizenship Ceremonies to formally welcome them.
Ahead of what will no doubt be an even busier and more exciting 2024, Ambassador Yu extends an invitation: “Join us and raise a glass to toast Australia Day, and the role that Filipinos and our countries’ bilateral relationship have played in making Australia the successful country it is today.”