MANILA, Nov. 7 (Xinhua) -- Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte will visit Malaysia starting Wednesday to strengthen bilateral ties, a government spokesman announced on Monday.
Duterte's overnight trip is part of his introductory visits to countries in the Southeast Asian region after he came to power in June. He has visited Indonesia, Laos, Brunei, Vietnam, China and Japan. The president will hold talks with Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak in Kuala Lumpur and also meet the Filipino community, among other arrangements, Assistant Secretary Charles Jose of the Department of Foreign Affairs told a news conference.
"The Philippines looks upon Malaysia, both as a brother nation and as a dependable partner, not only bilaterally but also within the larger context of the BIMP-EAGA and our beloved ASEAN community," Jose said.
BIMP-EAGA is the East ASEAN Growth Area, a sub regional cooperation initiative among Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines.
Malaysia has played a constructive role in helping bring peace and stability to southern Philippines and the two countries are cooperating to confront transnational concerns like piracy among other issues, Jose said.
"The visit hopes to further deepen Philippine-Malaysia ties for the mutual benefit of the two countries and their peoples."
