President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has emphasized the need to forge stronger alliances and continue “developing cooperation” with different countries to resolve soaring tensions in Taiwan.

In a conference hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, DC, Marcos described the situation on the island as “new,” which requires solutions to “also be new and that is why we are now formulating those partnerships between all the different countries.”

“Patuloy ang pagpatibay natin ng ating pagsasama at pagpa-partner dito… iba’t ibang bansa na hindi lamang ‘yung mga nakapaligid sa Pilipinas. Hindi lamang ang ating karatig bansa kung hindi pati na ang mga bansa na dati hindi naman natin nakakausap dahil walang pangangailangan na magkaroon tayo ng partnership (We are continuing to strengthen our cooperation and partnership with other countries, not just our neighboring countries, but also countries that we rarely interact with because we didn’t see the need to establish partnerships),” Marcos said.

He said the Philippines’ arrangements and alliances with other countries should be fixed so that they conform to the “needs of the day.”

“Not just Australia, not just the United States, also South Korea, also Japan, all of the ASEAN Member States and I think we can continue to… do that and I know that the countries… are already of the same mind,” he added.

Marcos said his campaign message of unity is beginning to extend not only to the local situation in the Philippines but also on the international scale.

“Sila rin ay naghahanap na nga ng mga – magsasama upang harapin ang bagong mundo na sabay-sabay (They, too, are looking for companions to face the new world together),” he said.

The President also reiterated his administration’s foreign policy that “the Philippines shall continue to be a friend to all and an enemy of none.” (PNA)