Mindanao peace, storm rehab to figure in talks with Clinton TJ Burgonio Philippine Daily Inquirer
November 07, 2009
MANILA, Philippines—(UPDATE) US assistance in the resolution of conflicts in Mindanao and the rehabilitation of storm-ravaged are among the topics for discussion between President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and US State Secretary Hillary Clinton next week, officials said Saturday.
Malacañang officials welcomed the whirlwind visit of Clinton to Manila next Thursday ahead of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Singapore on November 19.
"We welcome the visit of Hillary Clinton in her new capacity as Secretary of State.... This visit shows the good relations between the US and the Philippines,'' Press Secretary Cerge Remonde said over dzRB.
Clinton is scheduled to hold closed-door meetings with Arroyo and Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo over several issues during her November 12-13 visit before flying to other countries in Asia.
The meeting is seen as a prelude to the talks between Arroyo and US President Barack Obama on the sidelines of the APEC summit.
US help, specifically in the Mindanao peace process and the rehabilitation of areas devastated by recent, and the country's compliance with the Millennium Development Goals, are high on the agenda, a diplomatic source said.
The Department of Foreign Affairs, in a statement posted on its website, said the talking points are the Mindanao peace process, disaster management, climate change, and nuclear non-proliferation.
Ambassador Rafael Seguis, chair of the government panel negotiating peace with the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front, could not say what form of assistance the government would seek to end the Mindanao conflict.
"They've given us a wide array of assistance—general education, humanitarian assistance, relief and supplies. We'll see what we can do more at peace building,'' he said by phone.
Powerful storms pummeled Metro Manila and the rest of Luzon beginning late September, triggering heavy flooding and landslides that killed hundreds and damaged infrastructure and crops.
The talks would also tackle the Philippine role in nuclear non-proliferation ahead of its chairing the May 2010 Review Conference of the Parties to the Non-Proliferation Treaty in New York, and in the Asean-US Dialogue, according to the diplomatic source.
The source, however, said that US concerns on the May 2010 national elections and the smooth transition of leadership were not in the agenda.
"These may be raised in the talks, but they can't be formally placed in the agenda because these pertain to matters internal to a state,'' said the diplomatic source, who asked not be identified by name.
Without confirming these were part of the talking points, Remonde claimed that Arroyo's goal was to ensure clean elections and a smooth transfer of power after her term ends in June 2010.
"That's what the President is working for. That's why she's pushing for automation of elections to ensure honest and orderly elections,'' he said. "It's also her desire to ensure a smooth transition of power. These are issues where the President and Secretary Clinton see eye to eye and with the rest of the world.''
