MANILA — Foreign affairs Sec. Teodoro Locsin Jr. on Tuesday left for the United States to attend the US-ASEAN Special Summit, which will be held in Washington, DC from May 12 to 13.

Locsin, who will be attending on behalf of President Rodrigo Duterte, is expected to join leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in a number of events hosted by US President Joe Biden, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said in a statement.

The discussions will focus on areas such as pandemic recovery, health security, maritime security, climate change, clean energy transformation, digital economy, trade, and sustainable infrastructure, among others.

Aside from Biden, Locsin is also expected to have discussions with US Vice President Kamala Harris, members of the US Congress, as well as the US business sector.

The DFA said Locsin's discussions with US officials "will reaffirm the Philippines’ commitment to collaborate with its neighbors and partners for a sustainable post-pandemic recovery and lasting peace and security in the region."

The US-ASEAN Special Summit is the second special summit hosted by the US since it became ASEAN’s dialogue partner in 1977.

It comes as the US and ASEAN celebrate 45 years of diplomatic relations.

FROM THE ARCHIVES:

Watch more News on iWantTFC