President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today discussed with Ambassador Francis Taylor, the United States government’s Coordinator for Counterterrorism, ways and means of strengthening the counter-terrorism capabilities of the Philippines and other countries in Southeast Asia.

Taylor, who heads the US delegation to the two-day International Conference on Terrorism and Tourism Recovery which opened today at the Shangri-la Hotel in Makati, also gave the President an update on his visit to other countries in the Asian region which centered on regional cooperation in the fight against terrorism.

Specifically, the President and Taylor, who is one of US President George W. Bush’s advisers, talked about increased sharing of intelligence, the rooting out of terrorist cells, tightening of border security and disrupting of terrorist money flows.

The President proposed that a Philippine-US training exercise be conducted jointly in the Philippines for the police.

She also proposed the holding of an intelligence gathering exercise, in the same manner that joint training exercises are being held for Filipino and US soldiers.

The President and Taylor also discussed the status of the Anti-Terrorism Bill and amendments to the Anti-Money Laundering Law which they emphasized were vital to efforts to stop the flow of money being used by terrorist groups.

During the two-day international tourism and anti-terrorism conference, Taylor is expected to propose strategies for building international and regional cooperation in the fight against terrorism.

"I come here to support the tremendous effort of the government of the Philippines to work together against terrorism and, more specifically, from a regional perspective," Taylor said.

Aside from the subject of combating terrorism, the President likewise brought up the plight of the Filipino veterans in the US.

The President also asked for Taylor’s help for Filipino airport screeners who stand to lose their jobs in view of a requirement in the US Aviation and Transportation Security Act that all airport security screeners be US citizens. Airport security screeners are the ones who check passengers and baggage at the airport before they are allowed on board planes.

"They will be losing their jobs next week," the President told Taylor. The US official assured the President he will see what he can do on the matter.

Taylor is a former brigadier general who served with distinction in numerous command and staff positions in his 31 years in the US military service. Prior to his appointment as State Department Coordinator for Counterterrorism with the rank of Ambassador at Large, Taylor headed the US Air Force Office of Special Investigations, where he was responsible for providing commanders of all Air Force activities independent professional investigative services in fraud, counterintelligence and major criminal matters.

As head of the federal Office of Counterterrorism, Taylor coordinates all US government efforts to improve counterterrorism cooperation with foreign governments.

As the Coordinator, he chairs the interagency Working Group on Counterterrorism and the State Department’s terrorism task force to coordinate responses to major international terrorist incidents that are in progress,

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will lead the nation in tomorrow’s celebration of the National Day of Prayer and Fasting (NDPF) with an Inter-Faith Prayer Rally on Boni Avenue, Mandaluyong City starting at 3 p.m.

Under Proclamation No. 47, the second Saturday of November has been designated as a National Day of Prayer and Fasting for National Strength and Unity Against All Adversities.

This year’s celebration, under the theme "We Shall Overcome," will also be held simultaneously in six locations: two in Luzon, two in the Visayas, and two in Mindanao.

This year’s celebration is intended to rally the nation to overcome challenges and adversities through prayer and action.

The country’s top government officials will lead the six prayer rallies. Among them: Vice President Teofisto Guingona (Dr. Torres Memorial Hospital in Lamitan, Basilan); Senate President Franklin Drilon (Sea Front, Iloilo City); House Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr., (Igorot Park, Baguio City); Chief Justice Hilario Davide (Provincial Capitol, Cebu City); and Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao Governor Parouk Hussin (Camp Duma Sinsuat, formerly Camp Abubakar).

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has said the peso should strengthen in the coming weeks as dollar remittances from overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) have started to come in.

The BSP said the peso should stabilize this month until December considering the expected flow of dollars from overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), the bullish export performance, and a correction in oil prices.

The government expects dollar remittances from OFWs to reach $8 billion this year, or 43 percent more than the 2001 level.

The BSP also reported the country’s gross international reserves (GIR) reached $15.945 billion as of end-October 2002. This level was slightly lower than the end-September 2002 level of $16.025 billion.

The current GIR level is equivalent to 5.1 months of imports of goods and payment of services and income.

The minimal decline in the GIR, the BSP said, was due primarily to debt service payments for maturing obligations of the BSP and the national government, including the National Power Corporation (Napocor).