Updated on January 11, 2024 at 11:38 p.m.
MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is scheduled to visit Germany on March 12.
Marcos announced this during a courtesy call with German Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock in Malacañang on Thursday.
“We have been in contact with one another over the past few months simply because we have been trying to arrange a visit to Germany. And I think we have finally managed, with your embassy’s staff, we’ve been driving them a little crazy,” the president said.
“We keep moving things because things have been coming up. But I think we have come down on the March 12th, the March 12 date. So I can commit to that now,” he added.
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Baerbock is on official visit in the Philippines from January 11 to 12, upon the invitation of Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo.
READ: Marcos’ foreign visits yield P427-B investments, says DTI official
Her visit is part of her official travels to the Middle East and Southeast Asia, the Department of Foreign Affairs said in a press release dated January 9.
Baerbock’s trip was the first visit by a German Federal Foreign Minister to the Philippines in over a decade.
During the same meeting, Marcos also invited Baerbock to visit other destinations in the Philippines.
Moreover, he also mentioned the growth of Southeast Asia in terms of trade and geo-political matters.
“What we used to define as the Southeast Asia has now expanded to Indo-Pacific area. And on this, I’m not talking simply about geo-political concerns, especially also trade,” Marcos said.
According to the Presidential Communications Office, the diplomatic relations between the Philippines and Germany span 69 years since its establishment on October 8, 1954.
“Total trade with Germany reached US$3.91 billion with exports valued at US$2.28 billion and imports at US$1.63 billion. In 2022, Germany ranked as the Philippines 12th trading partner, 10th market export and 15th import supplier,” it said.
