Intervention by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.

at the ASEAN-Australia Special

Summit Leader’s Retreat Speeches 6 March 2024 Prime Minister Anthony Albanese;
Excellencies, good afternoon. At the outset, allow me to express the Philippines’
support for Laos’ Chairship of ASEAN this year and thank our Chair for ably
shepherding this Special Summit as Country Coordinator for ASEAN-Australia
relations. Geography is no accident, and for all of us gathered today, it is an
inescapable fact that we cannot change our geography. Unfortunately, the ominous
geopolitical developments in Ukraine, the Middle East, the Korean Peninsula, and
the South China Sea, among others, pose serious challenges to the capacity of our
global and regional security architecture to manage and resolve tensions, and to
protect the principles of sovereignty, sovereign rights, and territorial integrity. A
rules-based international order emanates from the lessons of history. Conflicts and
war necessitated an international order based on institutions and ruled which are of
universal import. We need not repeat history in order to recognize its lessons. It is
thus my government’s position that we will not yield an inch of our sovereign
territory, as we are committed to defending our rights within the parameters
recognized by international law. It therefore behooves the Philippines, ASEAN, and
Australia, and all like-minded states to exercise the boldness and sense of
responsibility to remain committed to the peaceful resolution of disputes and to
maintain respect for the rules-based international order and multilateralism,
especially in the face of deliberate efforts by others to denigrate, deny, and even
violate international law. It remains the responsibility of each state to promote and
protect the rule of international law as much as any other state facing wanton
military might. Excellencies, We all have our respective positions on recent
developments around the world. The disruptions caused by the COVID pandemic,
the war in Ukraine, and the developments in the Middle East have taught us
invaluable lessons on the paramount importance of the need to deftly and delicately
manage the growing challenges of geopolitics, recognizing that their adverse effects
on our interconnected economies will certainly affect the wellbeing of all our
citizens. We thus thank like-minded states such as Australia for promoting a rules-
based international order grounded on international law. We acknowledge ASEAN’s
oldest Dialogue Partner’s support not only through statements, but also through
concrete initiatives that recognize the Philippines’ rights under international law in
the South China Sea. It is the Philippines’ hope that ASEAN continues to collectively
and constructively address challenges together. Let me be clear. We encourage our
ASEAN neighbors to frame conflicts not simply as rivalry between major powers, but
as direct challenges to the sovereignty of independent states whose well-being, both
politically and economically, are interdependent and intertwined. Peace is both a
global public good and one of humanity’s highest values that no one state should put
at risk, for whatever gain or motive. We thank Australia for convening this Special
Commemorative Summit and this first Leaders’ Retreat for ASEAN for this year. May
this meeting set the pace for constructive dialogue for the rest of this Chairship year
as we address our region’s shared challenges together. Thank you.