Marcos says Singapore's Tharman to visit PH in August

SINGAPORE - President Ferdinand ''Bongbong'' Marcos Jr. disclosed on Saturday that Singaporean President Tharman Shanmugaratnam would visit the Philippines in August.

''The President has already graced our invitation for him to visit and is planning a visit to our country in August. And the Prime Minister, he says, he will follow as quickly as he can,'' Marcos said in his arrival statement.

''And this is very important, as most especially 2024 marks 55 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries. We committed to work hard in pursuing the signing of three near completion MOUs by the time the Singaporean President visits Manila later this year,'' he added.

The two leaders had a bilateral talk before Marcos' keynote address at the 2024 IISS Shangri-La Dialogue on Friday evening.

The Philippine president mentioned the significant exchanges between the Philippines and Singapore particularly on people-to-people and efforts to address climate change, including the government’s bid to the Loss and Damage Fund Board.

Tharman, for his part, said he looks forward to his state visit to the Philippines and hopes for a stronger relationship between the two countries. —KG, GMA Integrated News