President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. flew out Monday night to attend a sustainability summit in Abu Dhabi, his first foreign trip this year. The 2026 national budget earmarks ₱1.018 billion for his local and international travels.
Mr. Marcos will also witness the signing of trade and defense agreements between Manila and Abu Dhabi during his three-day working visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), indicating his administration’s push for stronger economic and security ties in the region.
“Any mutually beneficial arrangement between our two nations will not only benefit Filipinos at home, but also Filipinos in the UAE,” the President said in his departure speech.
The UAE is home to about 900,000 Filipinos.
Manila and Abu Dhabi are to sign the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, which would expand cooperation in trade, services, and investments, and provide the Philippines greater access to the wider Gulf Cooperation Council market composed of the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia.
It will be the first free trade agreement between the Philippines and a Middle Eastern country, the President said.
He said the two countries will also sign a memorandum of understanding on defense cooperation, which will serve as “a strong platform for collaboration” on advanced defense technologies.
During the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week, Mr. Marcos will join other world leaders in talks to “address climate change, renewable energy, and sustainable economic development.”
“The forum will endeavor to find solutions to the challenges of the present and of the future, to which a unified approach by the community of nations is required,” he said.
The Philippines, he added, will “actively participate in the dialogues to find answers to the complex and interconnected issues on energy, water, finance, food, and the environment, and expects to gain valuable insights from the views of other world leaders.”
The President is attending the sustainability summit upon the invitation of the UAE President, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. He is accompanied by a small delegation and will also meet with business leaders and the Filipino community in Abu Dhabi, according to Malacañang.
First lady Liza Araneta-Marcos flew ahead to the UAE last weekend, to meet with business leaders and Filipino workers there.
Since he assumed office on June 30, 2022, the President has made at least 36 foreign trips, including a visit to Singapore to watch the Formula 1 Grand Prix race in October 2022.
His budget of ₱1.018 billion for local and foreign missions in 2026 is lower than the ₱1.2 billion allocation last year.
Last August, days after Malacañang submitted its proposed budget to Congress, Palace press officer Claire Castro defended the planned outlay for Mr. Marcos’ travels.
“The President always goes down to the communities to check the security and monitor what is happening in different parts of the country, especially when there’s flooding and other calamities,” Castro said. “And you can also see the President’s frequent travels, as he encourages other countries to invest in our country.”
In his second State of the Nation Address in 2023, the President said: “We have embarked on foreign trips to promote the interests of the country, for peace-building and for mutually beneficial purposes.” CS
