On the move on day 3 of the new Trump presidency

Upon direct instructions of the President, we arranged for Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro, who flew into Washington D.C., to meet with newly appointed National Security Advisor Michael Waltz at the White House. After our short meeting with the National Security Advisor, we proceeded to have an expanded meeting with Principal Deputy National Security Advisor Alex Wong as well as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Andrew Byers and National Security Council Senior Director for Asia Ivan Kanapathy at the West Wing of the White House.

Both meetings were extremely productive, where we focused on serious security issues and the reaffirmation of the enduring alliance between the Philippines and the United States.

Secretary Teodoro emphasized both nations’ shared commitment to peace, stability and mutual security interests in the Indo-Pacific region, and the paramount importance of strengthening the bilateral defense ties between the Philippines and the United States to address emerging geopolitical challenges.

These meetings took place two days after the inauguration of President Donald Trump, making the Philippines one of the first countries to engage with the new administration – a very significant step in further advancing our longtime alliance, with both sides expressing optimism in deepening defense and security cooperation in the years to come.

Additionally, there was also a telephone conversation between Foreign Affairs Secretary Ricky Manalo and State Secretary Marco Rubio in the morning (Washington DC time) on issues of mutual concern, among them the dangerous actions of China in the South China Sea that undermine regional peace and stability. They also exchanged views on advancing security cooperation and expanding economic ties for shared prosperity.

Secretary Rubio, who underscored the “ironclad” commitment of the US to the Philippines under the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty, certainly recognizes the importance of strengthening economic – not just defense or military – ties, for the bilateral relationship to be enduring.

“When your engagement with a country leads to economic development, whether it’s outbound US investment in the Philippines or what have you, then that becomes enduring. Then it makes it difficult, no matter who’s in charge, to walk away from the alliance, because the alliance is more than just military and a military presence. It also involves jobs and businesses and investment and economic opportunity, and we need to look for ways to emphasize that. I think it would be a mistake to simply view it as a military or defense alliance,” Secretary Rubio stated during his confirmation hearing.

We are looking forward to working closely with Secretary Rubio’s team at the State Department in advancing shared priorities and strengthening US-Philippines ties even further.

As I have emphasized on several occasions, we have strong support from both Republicans and Democrats, and we will continue to work with them on issues that are mutually beneficial – because this relationship is a two-way street. I also know that the US sees the Philippines as an important ally, especially at this time. This bipartisan support from members of the US Congress was evident during my meeting last Thursday at the US Capitol with Democratic Senator Brian Schatz of Hawaii, who is a member of the Senate foreign relations committee.

“Ambassador Romualdez and I had a constructive discussion about opportunities and challenges in the Indo-Pacific. We discussed how we can better coordinate and strengthen US military and economic support to the Philippines and further elevate our alliance,” he shared in his website, adding, “We have a long, close relationship with the Philippines and the Filipino people, and our commitment to the US-Philippine alliance remains ironclad.”

During the inauguration of President Trump and the social events that followed shortly thereafter, I also had the opportunity to engage with “old and new faces” who will be taking on important roles in the Trump administration for the next four years to bring our relationship to even greater heights. We also hosted a reception at the Philippine embassy, bringing together representatives from the new government, the US Congress and members of the media, among several other sectors.

In my interview with Karen Davila of ANC, I amply described how our relationship with the United States will be like under the new Trump administration. Naturally, an issue of great concern is the new immigration policy and its impact on the estimated 350,000 undocumented Filipinos in the United States.

Clear instructions have already been given to all consulates general in the United States on what we can do to help our kababayans regardless of their immigration status. Early this month, we met with members of a group called Filipino American Legal Defense and Education Fund (FALDEF) to discuss the challenges faced by undocumented Filipinos and shared insights on how those affected can have access to legal counsel and how they can have a legal path to stay in the US. FALDEF representatives led by their president Jose Teodoro Mallonga are also offering pro bono legal services and partnering with other Filipino community organizations to strengthen the support network for vulnerable groups.

The embassy and our consulates general all over the US are likewise continuing efforts to disseminate information about the rights of all Filipinos in the US, regardless of their immigration status, through our websites and social media platforms, providing information from the US Department of Labor, migration offices of states, immigration centers and various sources.

As always, the Philippine embassy will do what we can in assisting all Filipinos regardless of status. But as I told Karen, the bottom line advice to our fellow Filipinos is to follow a legal path – if one wants to have peace of mind.

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