By Alexis Romero
BANGKOK – Leaders of the Philippines and Thailand have vowed to strengthen defense and economic cooperation and reaffirmed their commitment to work together to address common concerns.
In a bilateral meeting described as “productive and fruitful,” President Duterte and Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha stressed that they have a joint responsibility to uphold the interests of their countries and the region.
“I am glad that our discussions today were productive and fruitful. The discussions point to a keen interest in moving forward to a future of greater peace, progress and prosperity,” Duterte said on Tuesday night.
“Among other issues, we resolved to use our consultative mechanisms to the fullest. This will ensure that issues of common concern are addressed and that we continue to build on the commitments that we have made,” he added.
The two leaders cited the need to address traditional and emerging threats to their collective security and stability, including transnational crimes like terrorism and violent extremism, piracy, as well as human and drug trafficking.
“We vowed to do more, our utmost to strengthen cooperation in bilateral, regional and international levels to effectively address these scourges and menace to our societies,” Duterte said.
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