German president Steinmeier on PH state visit
MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will welcome German Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who is scheduled to arrive on Monday for a state visit.
The two leaders are expected to discuss issues of mutual interest, including defense, peace-building, maritime cooperation, trade and investment, climate change, renewable energy, and people-to-people exchanges, according to the Presidential Communications Office.
They will also exchange views on regional and international matters of mutual interest, including the Philippines’ chairmanship this year of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean).
Steinmeier and first lady Elke Büdenbender, together with a high-level German delegation, are expected to arrive at Villamor Air Base late on Monday evening.
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On Tuesday, he will offer a wreath of flowers at the shrine of national hero Jose Rizal before proceeding to Malacañang, where he will be accorded military honors.
Itinerary
Marcos and Steinmeier will also hold bilateral meetings and present their signed agreements in a joint press conference.
Steinmeier will also visit Fort Santiago and have a tour of the Rizal Museum in Intramuros, according to a statement released by his office.
Rizal spent more than a year — from February 1886 to May 1887 — in various cities in Germany. His novel “Noli Me Tangere” was finalized in Berlin and first came off the press in March 1887.
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Steinmeier will also tour Lufthansa Technik Philippines, one of the world’s largest maintenance centers for wide-body aircraft, which trains predominantly Philippine-skilled workers to German standards.
He will also meet with Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Ressa, co-founder and CEO of news website Rappler, who will speak about her work in support of press freedom and democracy.
Steinmeier will then travel on to Tashkent in Uzbekistan to meet with its leader, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev.
Before flying to Manila, Steinmeier traveled to Jakarta and met with Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto.
Steinmeier’s visit here marks a key moment in the more than 70 years of diplomatic relations between Manila and Berlin.
The last visit by a German head of state was by President Heinrich Lübke in 1963, during the administration of President Diosdado Macapagal.
President Marcos had a working visit to Berlin in March 2024, meeting with then German Chancellor Olaf Scholz as they marked the 70th anniversary of Philippines-Germany diplomatic relations established on Oct. 8, 1954.
German businesses in PH
Germany is the biggest trading and investment partner of the Philippines among European Union (EU) countries.
Notable German companies operating in the Philippines include Siemens, Lufthansa Technik, Deutsche Bank, Bayer, and Bosch.
Bilateral trade reached an estimated $7.3 billion in 2025, with Philippine exports to Germany totaling US$5.14 billion.
German investments in the Philippines also focused on the IT-based services sector, where well-known German companies have outsourced internal business processes to the Philippines or have opened their operations in Manila.
German companies also invest in the Philippines’ maritime sector.
Germany has also been a development partner of Asean since 2016 and a constant voice for the rule of law and a rules-based international order in the Indo-Pacific.
In 2024, Germany committed $53.39 million in grants supporting climate action and environmental sustainability. /atm
