Phl, Spain hold political consultations

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines and Spain held on Wednesday high-level political consultations in Manila under the framework of the Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation of 2000.

Both countries reaffirmed their commitment to strengthen their special relationship by signing five cooperation agreements at the first meeting of the Philippine-Spain Joint Standing Committee on Culture, Education and Sports.

Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Policy Erlinda Basilio and Spanish Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Gonzalo de Benito led their respective delegations during the consultations held at the Department of Foreign Affairs.

Both officials cited the strong relations shared by the Philippines and Spain based on profound historical and cultural ties, friendship and cooperation.

They expressed satisfaction on the dynamism that has characterized the status of Philippines-Spain relations in the past few years, noting in particular the visit to the Philippines of Queen Sofia of Spain last July.

The two officials likewise cited the increased level of exchanges among high-level government officials and agreed that this will be sustained in the coming years.

They welcomed the initialing of the agreement between the Philippines and Spain on cooperation in combating transnational crime, and looked forward to its formal signing at the soonest possible time.

In the area of economic cooperation, the two officials noted that bilateral trade has increased significantly in the last few years, and underlined the importance of increased private sector exchanges, including through joint ventures among companies in their respective countries, to spur and intensify economic and commercial ties.

They also welcomed the interest of Spanish infrastructure companies in the public-private partnership (PPP) program.           

Basilio and de Benito affirmed the strong commitment of the Philippines and Spain to be partners in development cooperation, in coordination with Agencia Española de Cooperacion Internacional para el Desarollo, particularly in effectively addressing the development needs of the marginalized sectors of society.  

The two officials also noted with high satisfaction the results of the first meeting of the Philippines-Spain Joint Standing Committee under the Agreement on Cultural, Sports and Educational Cooperation, which was held prior to their meeting.

They welcomed the signing of several agreements pertaining to the promotion of the Spanish language and culture in the Philippines, on the mutual recognition of higher education studies and academic degrees, and on sports cooperation, and reaffirmed their commitment to ensure that these agreements will bear concrete results and further advance existing collaboration in the areas of culture, education and sports.