United States Vice President Kamala Harris thought the relationship between the Philippines and the US had strengthened compared to the situation during the previous administration.
Harris said this during her bilateral meeting with President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. in Malacañang on Monday, November 21. Harris is on a three-day Working Visit to the Philippines from November 20 to 22, 2022.
In her remarks, the US Vice President said they look forward to working with the Marcos administration.
"The alliance between the United States and the Philippines, and only under your leadership, continues to be strengthened, and we look forward to working with you on many of these issues," she said.
According to Harris, there were numerous opportunities for the Philippines and the US to continue strengthening their relationship, but the "long and enduring" ties between the two countries remain rooted in rules.
"The basis of our relationship is based on mutual commitments to international rules and norms and upholding those international rules and norms in all of the ways that we know," she said.
For his part, President Marcos reiterated that he could not see a future for the Philippines without the US. He made the same remark when he visited New York in September.
"I have said many times, I do not see a future for the Philippines that does not include the United States," he said.
"That really has come from the very close relationship that we have had with the US," he added.
"Since the war, it has just been strengthened in every way-- in the economic sense, the political sense, defense, security. I cannot think of an area where we have not cooperated, collaborated, and had good results for both our countries," he added. (Argyll Cyrus B. Geducos)