MANILA, (PNA) — The government has allocated some P12 million for President Benigno S. Aquino III’s two-day state visit to the Republic of Korea, Executive Secretary Paquito N. Ochoa Jr. said on Thursday.
President Aquino left this morning for Seoul via a chartered flight, accompanied by Senate President Franklin Drilon, Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert Del Rosario, Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima, Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin, Trade Secretary Gregory Domingo, Energy Secretary Carlos Jericho Petilla, Cabinet Secretary Jose Rene Almendras, Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio Coloma, Presidential Management Staff head Julia Andrea Abad and Presidential Protocol Chief Celia Anna Feria.
The budget covers, among others, transportation, accommodation, food and equipment requirements for the President and his 60-member official delegation during the visit on October 17 and 18.
President Aquino’s trip to Seoul is on the invitation of Republic of Korea President Park Geun-hye.
“Our President is expected to tackle several issues with President Park. These concern not only South Korea and our country, but also the region, and cover matters related to politics, defense, labor, trade and development assistance,” Ochoa said. “The President will also meet with key Korean business groups as well as the Filipino community there.”
According to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), President Aquino will be the first leader to undertake a state visit to Korea since President Park took office in February this year. This is also the first time that the two Asian leaders will meet.
While in Seoul, the DFA said President Aquino will witness the signing of memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the defense ministries of the Philippines and Korea, which covers a wide-range of cooperation from visit exchanges of military personnel and experts to humanitarian assistance and international peacekeeping activities.
The DFA also said that President Aquino will confer the Order of Lakandula on Representative Jasmine Bacurnay-Lee of the Korean National Assembly in recognition of her achievement and advocacies in promoting migrant women’s rights and multiculturalism.
Lee, who hails from Cavite and Davao City, is the first naturalized Korean to be elected to the National Assembly, the DFA added.