The President of the Southeast Asian nation Philippines, Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos Jr. is on a five-day state visit to India from August 4 to 8 accompanied by a high-level delegation. This is the maiden visit by the President to India since he was elected to power. President Marcos Jr. landed in New Delhi on August 4 and he is accompanied by the First lady Louise Araneta Marcos. The visit formally commenced on August 5th morning, with a ceremonial welcome at the Rashtrapathi Bhavan. Later, the President and the First Lady visited Raj Ghat and paid tributes to Mahatma Gandhi. A statement from MEA reiterated the commitment of India and Philippines “to the ideals of truth and non-violence”. The Philippines President is also set to meet Union Health Minister J.P.Nadda and other key officials. Later, the President is scheduled to travel to Bengaluru.
The visit marks 75 years of diplomatic relationship between New Delhi and Manila. It also comes at a crucial juncture when both the nations are holding their maiden joint naval drills in the South China Sea. Both nations, being the strong advocates of maritime security, freedom of navigation, open & inclusive Indo-Pacific, this bilateral visit thus helps to script a new chapter in the maritime diplomacy and geopolitics of Asia and Indo-Pacific. “India and Philippines are celebrating the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties. This visit will lead to further strengthening of India-Philippines relations”, said the statement released by the Ministry of External Affairs.
New Delhi and Manila Celebrates 75 years of Diplomatic Relations
Diplomatic relations between India and Philippines was established in November 1949. Since then, bilateral ties have been cordial and keep multiplying in a wide range of sectors such as trade, humanitarian assistance, capacity building, people-to-people ties etc. Strategic domains such as defence and maritime security are also a key focus area. Infact, to commemorate the 75 years of India-Philippines diplomatic relations a joint official logo was unveiled in November 2024.
Trade Relations: As of 2023-24, India-Philippines bilateral trade stands at US $3.5 billion. India’s export to Manila is around US $350 million and imports from Philippines stands at $92.3 million. India thus enjoys a trade surplus with the Philippines.
India is the largest exporter of pharmaceuticals to the Southeast Asian nation comprising of US $450 million. The nation accounts for a massive 20% of the total Indian pharmaceutical exports to the ASEAN region. Along with pharmaceuticals India also exports engineering goods, automobile parts & accessories, electric transformers, petroleum products, semi-finished iron & steel components etc. Meanwhile, India imports many strategic elements from the Philippines such as semiconductors, copper, lead, precious and semi-precious stones etc.
Indian Investments in Philippines: India’s cumulative investment in Philippines is approximately US $5 billion. The key investment areas are pharmaceuticals, healthcare, textiles and infrastructure. India has also signed MoU to invest in six quick impact projects(QIP) in areas of agriculture, disaster risk reduction & management, healthcare and livelihood support.
Defence and Maritime Cooperation: New Delhi has a series of initiatives to build a strong defence and maritime cooperation with Manila. The latest round of India-Philippines Joint Defence Cooperation Committee meeting was held in Manila in 2024. Also, the inaugural Maritime Dialogue was convened in Manila. The maiden India-Philippines Defence-Industry Seminar was held in 2024 at Manila.
These defence cooperation related initiatives along with the ongoing joint naval drills aims at fostering a lasting and credible defence partnership between India and Philippines both in the military operation and in the research & defence technology domain.
Humanitarian Assistance: India has been a first-responder to any disasters and causalities in the Southeast Asian region and across Indo-Pacific. Indian Coast Guard had rescued the Filipino crew members off the coast of Kerala in the aftermath of an accident and also in Gulf of Aden in a different incident in 2024.
India has extensively assisted Manila during Covid-19 pandemic with face masks, PPE Kits and other medical essentials. India has also provided US $ 5 lakh for the rehabilitation efforts in Marawi city of Philippines.
New Delhi and Manila thus extend cooperation on a wide spectrum of issues encompassing defence and maritime security, pharmaceuticals and health, agriculture, digital technologies etc. With the latest visit both the nations resolve to further strengthen the relationship as a defining partnership of 21st century, in an era marked by extreme geopolitical volatility and competing interests. Especially for India, a credible and trusted partner in the Indo-Pacific helps to further embolden New Delhi’s Act East, Vision MAHASAGAR and larger Indo-Pacific strategy.
