Flying more than 13 hours going to and then another 13 hours coming back to the Philippines, President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. (PBBM) completed his official mission in Kazan, Russia. As head of the Philippine government, the 68-year-old PBBM had to endure this back-breaking trip to and fro last week as the chairman of this year’s Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). The Philippines currently chairs the 11-member regional bloc in this part of the world.
On his 43rd foreign trip since becoming president in June 2022, his wife First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos did not join his working visit to the Russian Federation. In her Facebook post, Mrs. Marcos shared her thoughts on being part of the send-off party for the President at the Villamor Air Base: “A long journey for such a short visit – 13 hours to get there, another 13 hours flying home and only about 38 hours on the ground… Not an easy trip, but one made in service of the Filipino people and our shared future in the region.”
It was the first time for PBBM to step on Russian soil as head of state. It was his namesake father, the late president Marcos Sr., who established diplomatic ties of the Philippines with the then Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, or USSR, on June 2, 1976. Marcos Sr. signed the joint communiqué with Nikolay Podgorny, the chairman of the Presidium of the USSR Supreme Soviet during his historic state visit to Moscow.
The late president Fidel V. Ramos further pursued and cemented bilateral relations with Russia in a state visit in September 1997. It was a few years after the collapse of the USSR when then Russian president Boris Yeltsin welcomed Mr. Ramos in Moscow.
Former president Rodrigo Duterte also visited Russia, first on May 22-23, 2017. But it was cut short because he had to fly back to the Philippines following the deadly Marawi City siege in Mindanao. Mr. Duterte would later publicly reveal that Russian President Vladimir Putin helped quell the Marawi siege. He specifically acknowledged Russia’s “timely aid” of military equipment as Mr. Duterte frowned upon America.
Russia donations included 5,000 AK-74M Kalashnikov assault rifles, one million rounds of ammunition, 20 army trucks and 5,000 steel helmets to the Armed Forces of the Philippines. The military equipment arrived on Oct. 25 that year. The Marawi siege officially ended on Oct. 23, exactly five months after it began.
Mr. Duterte received the military equipment brought in by Russian submarine warship a day after the Philippines and Russia signed a military-technical cooperation agreement that would allow them to conduct joint research, production support and the possible exchange of experts and training of personnel.
Thus, Mr. Duterte made a second trip to Russia on Oct. 1-6, 2019. He held bilateral talks first with Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev in Moscow and later traveled to Sochi to meet with Putin.
Indeed, through the years the Philippines has had very healthy bilateral relations with Russia, in stride with our ASEAN neighbors. Along with PBBM’s fellow ASEAN heads of state, Russian President Putin invited them all to attend the 35th anniversary of the ASEAN-Russia relations which he organized and hosted in Kazan. Often called the “third capital of Russia,” Kazan is a major economic, scientific and cultural hub.
At the end of his whirlwind of activities, PBBM announced both sides issued the Kazan Declaration 2026: “ASEAN-Russia: Unity in Diversity – 35 Years Together.” It articulated the “shared vision for the future” of Russia with the ASEAN, he cited. Also arrived at during the less than two-day event was the ASEAN-Russia Comprehensive Plan of Action 2026-2030. PBBM described this as the principal roadmap for cooperation across the political-security, economic and socio-cultural pillars of ASEAN-Russia relations over the next five years.
During their bilateral talks in Kazan, PBBM invited Putin to come to Manila and represent Russia in the scheduled 21st East Asia Summit on Nov. 10-12 when the Philippines hosts the 49th ASEAN Leaders’ Summit. Putin last attended and participated in the 3rd ASEAN-Russia Summit held in Singapore on Nov. 14, 2018. Singapore will take over from the Philippines the ASEAN chairship in 2027.
It was a master stroke of Putin in being able to bring together the ASEAN leaders on this occasion while Russia remains sanctioned by the United States and European Union for the February 2025 invasion of Ukraine. Sanctions ranged from banning imports of Russian oil and coal, implementing price caps on Russian crude and prohibiting the export of advanced technologies, military hardware and luxury goods to Russia.
The Philippines supports Ukraine when the Marcos administration officially condemned the Russian invasion and backed multiple United Nations General Assembly resolutions that uphold Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and consistently voted to demand the withdrawal of Russian military forces.
In behalf of the Filipino people, PBBM has openly reaffirmed support for Ukraine, emphasizing it is a “valued partner” and advocating for a just and lasting peace. In fact, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky had his first historic in-person bilateral meeting with PBBM at Malacañang Palace on June 3, 2024 and personally thanked the Philippines for its clear support of Ukraine.
But Zelensky’s visit in Manila was first preceded by a telephone call by PBBM in November 2025 when he reaffirmed the warm relations of the two nations. In an official statement released by Malacañang, PBBM was said to have discussed with Zelensky the ways to strengthen ASEAN-Ukraine engagement as the Philippines assumed the ASEAN chairship.
Now, go figure where the Philippines will stand after the ASEAN-Russia accords reached in Kazan.
In a brief interview in Kazan with Philippine media, PBBM explained it this way: “I already said that the Philippines does – has – no longer subscribes to a bipolar world where you have to choose one side over the other.”
PBBM reassures us though that he would make “nuanced decisions” in navigating the geo-political fields of the “multi-polar world” that we now live in.