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Partners for peace, prosperity

On the ninth day of April in 1942, Filipino and American troops surrendered to the Japanese forces in Mount Samat during World War II. It marked the beginning of the infamous Death March, a 106-kilometer trek of about 76,000 prisoners of war to Capas, Tarlac.

What was called the “Fall of Bataan” 82 years ago has given birth to the rise of a strengthened alliance, a fortified bond between the Philippines, United States (US), and Japan.

𝑃𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝐹𝑒𝑟𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑅. 𝑀𝑎𝑟𝑐𝑜𝑠 𝐽𝑟. 𝑢𝑟𝑔𝑒𝑠 𝐹𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑝𝑖𝑛𝑜𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑒 𝑎𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑡𝑟𝑦 𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑒𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑡𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑖𝑡𝑠 𝑠𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑖𝑔𝑛 𝑟𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡𝑠 𝑤ℎ𝑖𝑐ℎ ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑎𝑙𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑦 𝑐𝑎𝑢𝑠𝑒𝑑 𝑝ℎ𝑦𝑠𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑚 𝑡𝑜 𝑖𝑡𝑠 𝑝𝑒𝑜𝑝𝑙𝑒. (PCO)

𝑨 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒈𝒆, 𝒉𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚
The commemoration of the Day of Valor in Mount Samat honored the Filipino and American soldiers who fought side-by-side as allies. It reminded the present generation of its debt to the heroes and their noble sacrifice.

In his message, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. underscored that the Fall of Bataan is a reminder of the Philippines’ singular purpose towards the future as one nation, supported by like-minded allies in this post-war, rules-based international order.

Eighty-two years on, the Chief Executive said, the country is still facing challenges and threats in its sovereign rights which have already caused physical harm to its people.

“Tulad ng pinamalas ng ating mga dakilang ninuno, hindi tayo dapat magpasupil at magpaapi, lalo na sa loob ng ating sariling bakuran (Just like what our forefathers did, we should not be subjugated and oppressed, especially within our own backyard),” he pressed.

Marcos added that Filipinos must embody the spirit that made Bataan stand to safeguard the future of the country.

“Ours is a complicated world today, but we must not yield. We must not back down from any, and all challenges that seek to threaten our peace, our honor, and our very existence,” he stated.

The Fall of Bataan in 1942 marked the resurgence of an independent and sovereign Philippines founded by the unbreakable will, unflappable courage, and undying patriotism of the war heroes.

𝐽𝑎𝑝𝑎𝑛𝑒𝑠𝑒 𝐴𝑚𝑏𝑎𝑠𝑠𝑎𝑑𝑜𝑟 𝐸𝑛𝑑𝑜 𝐾𝑎𝑧𝑢𝑦𝑎 𝑎𝑓𝑓𝑖𝑟𝑚𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝐽𝑎𝑝𝑎𝑛 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑃ℎ𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑝𝑝𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑠, 𝑡𝑜𝑔𝑒𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑙𝑖𝑘𝑒-𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑠, 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑒 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑝𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑏𝑢𝑖𝑙𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑙𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑜𝑛 𝑝𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑒, ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑚𝑜𝑛𝑦, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑔𝑜𝑜𝑑 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙. (PCO)

𝑭𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒑 𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒔𝒉𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒇𝒍𝒊𝒄𝒕
The friendship between Japan and the Philippines was rebuilt and nurtured from the ashes of conflict which occurred almost eight decades ago.

Japanese Ambassador Endo Kazuya highlighted that Japan will strive to actualize projects that bolster the maritime domain awareness and maritime law enforcement capabilities of the Philippines.

“In line with our commitment to create a bright future for both our people, Japan is determined to elevate our bilateral relations to further heights by giving rise to greater opportunities for cooperation in a wider range of areas including people-to-people exchanges, trade and investment, infrastructure building, maritime law enforcement, and defense cooperation,” he said.

As part of its enhanced cooperative efforts with the Philippines, Japan participated in the first ever Multilateral Maritime Cooperative Activity in the West Philippine Sea along with the US and Australia.

Kazuya also reaffirmed Japan’s commitment to maintain and strengthen the rule-based international and maritime order to never allow the devastation of war to be repeated for the sake of present and future generations.

“By upholding the international order based on the rule of law, Japan and the Philippines, together with other like-minded countries, become united partners in building a world founded on peace, harmony, and good will,” he emphasized.

Japan and the Philippines will continue to cooperate fully in ensuring greater progress in times of both crisis and prosperity.

The envoy added that Japan will continue to work with the Philippines to steadily materialize cooperative efforts in the areas of defense, strategic infrastructure, cyber, economic security, and energy.

“Let us seize this moment to reaffirm our commitment as strategic partners, allies, and friends in building a future preserving the peace and prosperity in the region. I believe that this is the best tribute we can offer to the souls of those who passed away in the fighting that took place here 82 years ago,” he further said.

Coming from the shadows of their bitter past, both countries emerged to be partners and friends with mutual respect, trust, and shared values.

At present, Japan remains as the Philippines major infrastructure development partner. It funds big-ticket projects that will enhance connectivity, attract investments, and create jobs in the Philippines. These include the Metro Manila Subway Project, North-South Commuter Railway, Metro Rail Transit Line-3 Rehabilitation, and Central Luzon Link Expressway.

𝑈𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 (𝑈𝑆) 𝐸𝑚𝑏𝑎𝑠𝑠𝑦 𝐶ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑔𝑒 𝑑’ 𝐴𝑓𝑓𝑎𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑠 𝑅𝑜𝑏𝑒𝑟𝑡 𝐸𝑤𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑈𝑆, 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑃ℎ𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑝𝑝𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑠, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐽𝑎𝑝𝑎𝑛 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑜𝑔𝑒𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑑𝑣𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑟 𝑝𝑟𝑖𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑒𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑑𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑝 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑟 𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝑐𝑜𝑜𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛. (PCO)

𝑰𝒓𝒐𝒏-𝒄𝒍𝒂𝒅 𝒓𝒆𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒑 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝒃𝒚 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒔𝒂𝒄𝒓𝒊𝒇𝒊𝒄𝒆, 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒂𝒈𝒆
For the US and the Philippines, the defeat in 1942 resulted in a feat today. Both countries rebuilt themselves together, and the strengthened bonds evolved into an iron-clad relationship at present.

US Embassy Charge d’ Affaires Robert Ewing shared that the US, the Philippines, and Japan are working together on advancing their priorities to develop their trilateral cooperation.

“Last year, the Philippines, US, and the Japanese coast guards carried out their first trilateral joint exercises. Weeks later, the National Security Advisers of all three nations met together to discuss matters of mutual concerns and areas for cooperation. A few months later, the US Secretary of State, the Philippines’ Secretary of Foreign Affairs, and Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs met to continue that conversation,” he recalled.

The envoy added that the US stands united with the Philippines as friends, partners, and allies, shoulder-to-shoulder in the name of freedom.

In March, US President Joe Biden’s trade mission generated around P1 billion US dollar worth of investments to the Philippines. These are set to create educational and career opportunities for about 30 million Filipinos.

Some of the investments are the Philippines’ first Electric Mobility Education and Development Center; rolling out of Google Career Certificates in 50 Department of Trade and Industry virtual campuses; and digital financial services and credit and financial literacy training to empower over 10,000 Filipino small business owners.

This week, leaders from the Philippines, US, and Japan meet for the first trilateral leaders’ summit. They will advance a partnership based on deep historical ties, robust economic relationships, and a shared vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific.

For these three countries whose brotherhood was founded from the heroic deeds in 1942, it is vital that they remain committed to the quest for prosperity and peace. The sacrifices made 82 years ago during the Fall of Bataan and the Death March remain as the very foundation of their strengthened bonds. (PIA 3)

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