Rubio in Philippines to boost ASEAN ties

MANILA, Philippines — United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio is scheduled to arrive in the country today for a five-day visit to attend the ASEAN Post-Ministerial Conference in Manila.

Rubio will also join the East Asia Summit Foreign Ministers’ Meeting and the ASEAN Regional Forum Foreign Ministers’ Meeting.

The US State Department said Rubio will also meet with senior government officials from different Indo-Pacific countries.

“The secretary’s visit advances a clear US priority: a free and open Indo-Pacific that delivers safety, security and prosperity for the region and for the American people,” a State Department statement said.

“Secretary Rubio will use this trip to demonstrate the tangible results of US-ASEAN partnership and to deepen the United States’ comprehensive partnership with the Philippines.”