President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. welcomes President Frank-Walter Steinmeier of the Federal Republic of Germany during an arrival honors in Malacañan Palace on June 16, 2026. (RTVM)
President Marcos welcomed German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier at the Malacañan Palace on Tuesday, June 16, during his state visit to the Philippines.
A 21-gun salute was accorded to the visiting German President during the welcome ceremony, followed by the two heads of State inspecting the honor guards.
Both leaders later introduced their respective Cabinet members and delegation members.
After the arrival honors, the two leaders proceeded to the Reception Hall of the Palace for the signing of the Guestbook.
The ceremony followed a bilateral meeting between Marcos and Steinmeier where they are expected to discuss defense cooperation, peacebuilding initiatives, maritime cooperation, trade and investment, climate change, renewable energy, and people-to-people exchanges.
In his opening statement, Marcos said Steinmeier's visit "marks a significant moment in the long-standing friendship between the Philippines and Germany."
"I note that this is the first visit by a German President for 63 years. And the last time a German Head of State visited the country was in 1963, when President and Mrs. Heinrich Lubke traveled to the Philippines," Marcos said.
"In our meeting today, Your Excellency, we look forward to discussing with the German delegation the wide array of cooperation between our two countries, both in the bilateral and in the multilateral fields," he added.
He noted that the meeting was an opportunity to talk to his German counterpart and their officials, "who are very much like-minded on the important issues of our times regarding the various challenges to peace being faced by all of us around the globe."
Steinmeier, on the other hand, noted the Philippines and Germany's "good trade relations" and their shared positions on rules-based order and international law.
"We have good trade relations. We are defending the rules-based order. We are defending the United Nations, the international law. So therefore, in our positions, we are very close," Steinmeier said.
Malacañang said Steinmeier's visit marked a key moment in more than 70 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
The last visit by a German President to the Philippines was in 1963.