MANILA: Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. left for Washington, D.C. on Sunday for meetings with Donald Trump and his administration ahead of the implementation of US tariffs on Southeast Asian countries.
Trump raised reciprocal tariffs on Philippine exports to 20 percent this month, up from the 17 percent initially threatened in April.
Some other Southeast Asian nations, including Indonesia and Vietnam, were hit with over 30 percent rates, forcing them to step up negotiations. According to Trump’s announcements, both countries agreed to zero tariffs on American exports, while accepting rates of 19 percent and 20 percent on their own goods, respectively.
Marcos, whose visit will be the first by an ASEAN head of state since Trump took office in January, vowed to push for “greater economic engagement” and focus on security and defense.
“I intend to convey to President Trump and his cabinet officials that the Philippines is ready to negotiate a bilateral trade deal that will ensure strong, mutually beneficial, and future-oriented collaborations that only the United States and the Philippines will be able to take advantage of,” he told reporters ahead of his departure from the Villamor Air Base in Pasay City.
“During this visit, we will reaffirm our commitment to fostering our long-standing alliances as an instrument of peace and a catalyst of development in the Asia-Pacific region and around the world.”
Besides Trump, the Philippine president will also have a meeting with US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Monday.
Philippine businesses were hoping that the fact that Marcos was the only ASEAN leader to negotiate the tariffs in person could offer some concessions for Washington’s key security partner in Asia, which, under a decades-long alliance, allows the US to build and operate facilities on Philippine military bases.
“For Manila, this development, along with President Marcos being the first ASEAN leader invited for a state visit under the current Trump administration, enhanced the country’s diplomatic profile and affirms its strategic relevance in the Indo-Pacific region,” Nunnatus Cortez, president of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry-Makati, told Arab News.
“The Philippine delegation would probably push for a bilateral agreement with the US, particularly on food security and semiconductors … We could only negotiate for a lower tariff than 20 percent. Difficult to get a zero percent tariff, as the latest news showed revenues from tariffs added close to $90 billion to the US in the first six months.”
