Diplomatic moves

Outgoing Swedish Ambassador Annika Thunborg is leaving the Philippines on Wednesday, Aug. 14, for a two-month vacation in New Zealand before returning to Sweden after her all-too-brief three-year stint in the country, where she has tirelessly promoted cultural, environmental, trade, economic, and security ties between Sweden and the Philippines.

According to the ambassador, she and her husband are taking a long two-month leisurely vacation in New Zealand before returning to Sweden, where she will either stay, or be given another foreign assignment.

During her term in the Philippines, Ambassador Thunborg arranged the visit of Swedish Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Johan Forssell to help strengthen trade and economic ties, as well as push for the resumption of free trade talks with the European Union, and also to meet with Philippine defense and security officials.

Likewise, Ambassador Thunborg also quietly arranged the visit of Swedish banker and industrialist Marcus Wallenberg, who heads the Wallenberg Sphere, which comprises (to name just a few) the Swedish bank Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken (SEB), Saab AB, ABB, the AstraZeneca pharmaceutical group, Ericsson, Electrolux and Nasdaq. Wallenberg met with the country’s top business families, including the Ayalas, the Sys, the Gokongweis and the Lopez family.

Ambassador Thunborg gave me the opportunity to interview both Minister Forssell and Wallenberg during their separate visits to the Philippines.

Lastly, Ambassador Thunborg also hosted the visit just this June of Swedish Defense Minister Pål Jonson, who took the opportunity to express Sweden’s support for the Philippines and its rules-based claim over its extended economic zone, which is now being encroached upon by China.

Jonson’s visit to the Philippines was the first ever by a Swedish defense official.

Bellevue Hotel vice president for sales and marketing Elvie Sanchez-Quiazon last week hosted a farewell dinner for the outgoing ambassador at the hotel’s penthouse restaurant Johnny’s Steakhouse, named after Bellevue Hotel’s founder and chairman Johnny Chan.

While Chan did not join us at the dinner, we had the opportunity to briefly meet him as he was enjoying the band playing at the rooftop bar of the hotel. He now has more opportunity to relax and enjoy himself as his three sons have taken over more active management duties of his hotel and resort properties.

The dinner gave Ambassador Thunborg an opportunity to say her farewell to an intimate group of diplomats and Philippine officials, including Sen. Cynthia Villar, Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Jesus Domingo and private sector partners, including Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Enunina “Nina” Mangio, “Mother of Philippine Franchising” Bing Sibal Limjoco and AstraZeneca Philippines president Lotis Ramin.

Ambassador Thunborg’s special relationship with Sen. Villar was based on their common effort to promote environmental issues and concerns, particularly benefiting Sen. Villar’s pet wetlands protection project in Las Piñas.

The ambassador has also worked closely with AstraZeneca and its various research projects on a wide range of medical concerns, including cancer research and vaccines, most recently for the COVID-19 vaccines.

She has also worked closely with the private sector, such as the PCCI, to promote two-way trade and cooperation between Sweden and the Philippines.

Economic diplomacy

Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for civilian security and consular affairs Jesus Domingo, who closely cooperated with Ambassador Thunborg during her tour of duty in the country, was the lone thorn at our table with Bellevue host Elvie Sanchez-Quiazon, PCCI president Nina Mangio, “Mother of Philippine Franchising” Bing Limjoco-Sibal and AstraZeneca Philippines president Lotis Ramin, as the Ambassador sat at a separate table with Sen. Villar and other guests.

Domingo is trying to work with Mangio, who is also the honorary consul of Liberia, to expand trade ties through the country’s more than 150 honorary consuls.

According to Domingo, the DFA normally works on furthering trade and economic ties with the additional assistance of the Department of Trade and Industry and the Department of Agriculture through their own trade and agricultural attachés.

Likewise, the DFA also works with the Department of National Defense and the Department of Migrant Workers through defense and labor attachés.

The Philippine government operating overseas, according to Domingo, follows the One Country Team approach. So, embassies and consulates are run by the DFA and have “almost about 95 foreign service posts.” Unfortunately, the DTI only has “about 30 attachés, and doing very well where they are posted, but leaving about 60 to 65 posts” without attachés.

Likewise, Domingo pointed out, the Philippines has about another 154 to 155 honorary consulates that also handle passports and visas.

The DFA, he explained, has a Multilateral and International Economic Relations and Economic Affairs department, but his section, particularly the Consular Affairs section, “has a key role in promoting economic diplomacy through our visa function. We are working closely with the Private Sector Advisory Council, the Department of Tourism, and the Bureau of Immigration to see how we can make visas easier for new markets, particularly India.”

He revealed that his department is currently working on e-visas. “We are beta testing... we are nearly completing our beta testing for e-visas for the Indian market, which has huge potential.”

Likewise, he said, they are also looking at other countries and working with other stakeholders “to more systematically bring in more investors and tourists.” He also wants “to more comprehensively tap our honorary consuls and how we can make our post with our DTI attachés work more closely with the DTI in promoting economic diplomacy.”

He also expressed his desire to work more closely with honorary consulates in the Philippines, which he feels have “great potential” and are “ripe for expansion.”

He has, in fact, started a diplomatic networking activity... a Diplomatic Consular Club that brings together the diplomatic community, the consular community, the DTI and the private sector to work on a cluster of themes and regions intended to open up new markets that usually require new visas.

Thus, Domingo has been following President Marcos’ marching order to open up new markets, starting with the Indian market and the e-visas.