Rody wants less dependence on traditional trade partners

MANILA, Philippines - President Duterte yesterday left for an official trip to Russia on hopes that his visit would result in improved trade relations with Russia and less dependence on traditional trading partners.

The President is scheduled to hold talks with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.

Duterte brought to Russia a delegation of around 200 businessmen in a bid to open up trade between the two countries.

“Russia must cease to be at the margins of Philippine diplomacy. Over-dependence on traditional partners has limited our room to maneuver in a very dynamic international arena,” the President said at the Davao International Airport before leaving for a four-day trip to Moscow around 4 p.m.

“This is a strategic oversight that has led to many missed opportunities for our country. I am determined to correct this.

“My administration will give Philippines-Russia relations the importance commensurate to its full potential. We will push for pragmatic engagement in the politico-security sphere, increased economic cooperation and enhanced cultural and people-to-people exchanges. This is a concrete expression of this deliberate policy decision,” he added.

Duterte said in his meeting with Putin and Medvedev, he would be charting the future direction of the Philippines’ partnership across many areas. They would exchange views on regional and international issues to determine how they can best advance their shared interests.

“Certainly, I will take the opportunity to engage the business leaders in Russia. With the Philippines’ emphasis on sustaining our economic growth, we seek responsible economic partners who will become our new allies in development,” he said.

Duterte also recalled that he and Putin agreed to give a much-needed boost in bilateral relations during their talks last year at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) in Lima, Peru.

“The doors for cooperation opened 40 years ago. But it has opened ever so slightly,” he said.

“There is much room to develop mutually beneficial cooperation. There are many opportunities that need to be explored. Now we can work together to open those doors even wider,” he added.

Honorary doctorate degree

Duterte is scheduled to receive an honorary doctorate degree from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO) a month after he said he does not accept awards “as a matter of personal and official policy.”

The MGIMO will confer an honorary doctorate on Duterte tomorrow, the second day of his four-day official visit to Moscow, a schedule released by Malacañang showed.

It will be the first honorary degree to be given to Duterte as president.

After the conferment ceremony, Duterte will deliver a policy speech and hold a dialogue with students of the university. He will also witness the donation of books to the MGIMO library.

In its website, the MGIMO said it has granted honorary doctorate degrees to prominent foreign politicians, public experts, diplomats and scholars working in the field of international relations and foreign policy.

Other prominent personalities who were given the degree include former Philippine president Fidel Ramos; former United Nations secretary-general Ban Ki-moon, who has expressed concern over the human rights situation in the Philippines under Duterte; former France presidents Nikolas Sarkozy and Jacques Chirac; international financier and philanthropist George Soros; former Indonesia president Megawati Sukarnoputri and former Japan prime minister Yoshiro Mori. – With Alexis Romero