President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today restated the Philippines’ commitment to support the United States-led war against global terrorism even as she called on the United Nations Security Council to consider the US case against Iraq for the sake of humanity.

In her policy speech delivered this morning before the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines (FOCAP) at the Mandarin Hotel in Makati City, the President said the alliance between the Philippines and the US has become more important "in our righteous fight against terrorism and poverty."

The President said that today the war against terrorism has reached another defining moment as the issue of Iraq sharpens in focus.

"It is a moment for the Philippines to calibrate, recalibrate its foreign policy so that we can continue to achieve our goals of peace, prosperity and stability in the context of the realities lying today in the international and regional environment," the President said.

According to the President, the current Philippine-US alliance is a moral partnership that is governed by the common belief in strong democratic institutions that will create peace and freedom for peoples everywhere.

"We are determined to fight terrorism to the end. We have offered political, security and humanitarian assistance to the US in the pursuit of her most vital interests against terrorism which coincide with our own," the President said.

As part of the commitment to fight global terrorism, the Philippines also supports the case brought by the US against Iraq in the UN Security Council, the President said.

"The UN Security Council must give these charges the most urgent and serious consideration for the sake of the whole world," the President said.

When pressed in the open forum on what the Philippines would do in case the US attacks Iraq, the President said "tactically, we have to cross the bridge when we come to it."

She said that the main concern of the government right now is preparedness for Filipinos in the Middle East and energy security of the country in the event that the US attacks Iraq.

In rejecting criticisms that the Philippines is "being slavish" to the US by siding with Washington in the issue of Iraq, the President said: "Our motivation is not about pleasing America on this issue. Our motivation is working with the world to save mankind against the perpetuation of terror."

The President said that the "strategic partnership" between the Philippines and the US has reached a high point during the RP-US military training exercise, called Balikatan 02-1, held in Mindanao.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today cited two main concerns of the government in the event that the United States pushes through with its threat to attack Iraq.

In her policy speech this morning before the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines (FOCAP) at the Mandarin Hotel in Makati City, the President said the first concern of the government is on how to ensure the safety of Filipino workers in the Middle East.

The second concern, the President said, is energy security for the Philippines in the event that another Gulf war breaks out.

On the first concern, the President said, she supports the stand of former AFP Chief, retired Gen. Roy Cimatu, now special envoy to the Middle East, that a relocation, rather than evacuation back to the Philippines, is the more appropriate measure to take.

The President, however, said that for workers who would like to be repatriated to the Philippines in case of war, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) would provide them with assistance.

On energy security, the President said, the stockpile of oil firms today is good for 62 days even if the government has only asked them for a 40-day stockpile.

According to the President, in the past, the oil firms’ stockpile included those that are still in transit but today’s stockpile pertains to what is in the country.

In addition to that, the President said, she has also asked Speaker Jose de Venecia, Jr. to help look for possible new sources of oil, like Russia.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today lauded the United States, particularly the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), for its assistance in the development of Mindanao.

In her policy speech this morning before the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines (FOCAP) at the Mandarin Hotel in Makati City, the President said for the fiscal year 2002, the USAID extended some P4 billion in assistance to the Philippines and more than half of this went to economic and social projects in Mindanao.

"This assistance to Mindanao is more than double what the USAID has provided for the island last year," the President said.

She said that the USAID’s growth with equity program in Mindanao has helped strengthen the competitiveness of Mindanao’s fishery, fruit and vegetable industries.

The President said that the agency’s livelihood enhancement and peace program, or LEAPP, has also helped former combatants of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in reintegrating into the local economy. This program has already benefited some 13,000 former MNLF fighters, she added.

Aside from helping MNLF returnees in their livelihood projects, the USAID is also engaged in improving the quality of family planning and rural health services in the rural areas in Mindanao.

"Efforts are also being exerted to help local governments in combating illegal fishing and logging," the President said.

She said the Bayanihan assistance program of the US, which runs from August l to December this year is aimed at improving the socio-economic conditions of Basilan and Zamboanga.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today refused to categorically reveal her plans for 2004, stressing that she would rather concentrate on solving the country’s problems and focusing her energies on effective governance.

"You know, I don’t spend my time introspecting about 2004. I spend my time looking at the problems, trying to see them in a strategic framework, working out the strategic directions to address them," the President said at the open forum of the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines (FOCAP) held this morning at the Mandarin Hotel in Makati City.

The President said she is focusing on an eight-point work program of her administration for the next six months.

She enumerated only five of the eight-point agenda for action which, she said, would be the topic of another policy speech she will deliver this coming Friday.

In reply to a persistent query on whether she would run in the presidential polls in 2004, the President said that as a politician, she is a fatalist. "I think that the presidency is made in heaven, and that’s up to God," she said.

When pressed on when she would announce her plans for 2004, the President replied: "I don’t know. The Lord’s timing is always perfect. So, I’ll leave that up to Him," she said.

The President then enumerated her agenda for action.

First in the work program, the President said, is to push for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to strengthen the domestic market and to wean the country from too much dependence on the export market.

The second, the President said, is to further boost the housing industry because of its multiplier effect and getting the private sector to go invest more in housing by removing bottlenecks.

The third is how to reduce cargo rates from Mindanao to Luzon, with the Development Bank of the Philippines putting together a P30-billion master plan for this purpose, the President said.

She said that the fourth item in the work program is to develop Makati City into an urban tourism destination for tourists, especially working Japanese single women who like to go shopping.

The fifth is to decongest Metro Manila traffic by getting off the ground such projects as the North Rail Project in Central Luzon as well as the rail system in going to CALABARZON (Calamba, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon) growth area and to the Port of Batangas.

Although she kept mum on her 2004 plans, the President, however, thanked politicians endorsing her for 2004, referring to statement of support aired Tuesday by leaders of the Liberal Party.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today restated the administration’s eight-point foreign policy, emphasizing her determination to push Philippine-US relationships forward to a new era of a stronger and more equitable partnership.

Speaking at a luncheon meeting with the officers and members of the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines at the Mandarin Hotel in Makati, the President said the drive to bring Philippine-American relationships to a higher level derives "its main promise in greater security and stability for our nation, for the region and the world."

"We are living in trying times," the President said. "Close partnership and alliances and imperative for peace, security and democracy. This is the strategy of survival."

"This strategy," she added, "stands on the determination to shape our relations with America in consonance with existing treaties, with our shared goals but, most of all, with our Filipino interests."

The President said the current Philippine-US alliance is a moral partnership which is governed by the common belief in strong democratic institutions that will create peace and freedom for people everywhere.

She said the administration’s efforts at modern democratic governance have been undermined by a climate of incessant conflict and the determination to bring progress to the nation has been tested by fanatical armed groups who find every ideological excuse to block development.

"These (fanatical groups) include the terrorists in the radical left who have lost all moral force to lead any revolution for the poor," she added.

"The truth and reality is that we are at war," the President said. "We are at war with an enemy that is as tenacious and incorrigible as ever in its evil designs."

The President, in redefining Philippine foreign policy, said that one reality is that more and more policy decisions have really been made in the context of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

"Thus, soon after (the) September 11 (terrorist attacks in the US) last year, we initiated a trilateral agreement with Indonesia and Malaysia to check terrorist incursion in our common seas. Thailand has agreed to join this agreement," the President said.

The second reality, the President added, is that the international Islamic community will continue to be important for the Philippines. "We continue to pursue broad interfaith dialogues to promote Christian and Muslim solidarity," the President said.

Third, the coming years will see the growing importance of multilateral and inter-regional organizations to promote common interests such as the strengthening of the United Nations.

"Thus, the Philippines supports the case brought by the United States against Iraq before the UN Security Council," the President said.

Fourth, the President said that the defense of the nation’s sovereignty and the protection of its environment and natural resources can be carried out only to the extent it asserts its right over maritime territory and gets others to respect those rights.

Saying this is unrelated to the war against terrorism, the President expressed gladness that the case against the Chinese fishermen has come to a satisfactory conclusion.

Fifth, the President said, the country’s economic growth will continue to heavily involve direct foreign investments, giving a strategic importance to the country’s relations with Europe which is now a major investor.

Sixth, the President said that a country like the Philippines can benefit most quickly from international tourism. "Thus, we deplore that our bid to attract investments and tourism have been sabotaged by those who relish the notoriety brought about by barbaric acts such as hostage taking, political assassination, destruction of property and senseless murder," she said.

Seventh, the President emphasized, overseas Filipinos will continue to play a critical role in the country’s economic and social stability.

"Thus, even in the shadow of conflict in Iraq, it is our duty to all Filipinos in the Middle East to prepare for any contingency and be able to move them to safer ground at a moment’s notice," the President said.

And the last but of utmost importance, the President said China, Japan and the United States and their relationships will be the determining influence in the security situation and economic evolution of East Asia.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today stressed the importance of the Islamic countries to the Philippines, saying it is included among the eight realities that she must deal with in formulating the nation’s foreign policy.

Answering questions from members of the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines (FOCAP) during a luncheon meeting at the Mandarin Hotel in Makati, the President said the Islamic world is a very important host to Filipino workers.

She said the Islamic world is not only an important source of energy, but more than anything, it has been very helpful to the Philippines in its peace process in the South.

"That’s why even as we seek to find our place in the global alliance against terrorism, part of the 14 things I enumerated in the FOCAP last year in the fight against terrorism, is to broaden our interfaith dialogue," the President said.

Instead of a religious war which is the aim of the terrorists, the President said the opportunity must be used to deepen religious understanding.

"So we have continued our dialogue with the Islamic countries, and I am very gratified that they continue to be very supportive of our efforts in Southern Philippines, as well as in being a good host to our Filipino workers," the President said.

The President, in her eight point foreign policy, said that the international Islamic community will continue to be important for the Philippines.

"Thus, we continue to pursue broad interfaith dialogues to promote Christian and Muslim solidarity," she said.

LIPA CITY, Batangas – President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today thanked the investors of Epson Precision Philippines Inc. (EPPI) for their continued expansion of operations in the country and for providing stable jobs to almost 5,000 workers.

In her brief remarks during a tour of the EPPI plant at the Lima Technology Center in Lipa, Batangas, the President cited the computer printer manufacturing firm for its contribution to the Philippine economy and the administration’s efforts to provide jobs for Filipinos.

"Thank you for bringing continuous employment in our country and we are looking forward to the possible expansion of your company in the Philippines," the President told EPPI executives led by Motoharu Komatzu, president of Epson Philippines, and Hideaki Yasukawa, chairman of Seiko Epson.

Despite heavy rains, the President motored to the EPPI plant here from her luncheon meeting with the Foreign Correspondent Association of the Philippines in Makati City.

Upon her arrival here, the President received a warm welcome from the officials and employees of EPPI.

The President, accompanied by Trade and Industry Secretary Manuel A. Roxas II and Lipa City Mayor Vilma Santos, then made an inspection tour of the plant.

During the tour, the President was given an update by Komatsu on EPPI’s expansion since the company started producing mini-printers in its first plant in Cabuyao, Laguna on September 1995.

Komatsu informed the President that the EPPI plant in Lipa is the largest in Asia.

He also told the President that EPPI in Lipa is the main provider and producer of terminal printers and other printer parts that are exported to the United States, East Asia and other countries.

Among the local officials who welcomed the President here were Mayor Santos, Rep. Oscar Gozos of the Fourth District of Batangas, Chairperson Lilia B. de Lima of the Philippine Economic Zone Authority, and Chief Superintendent Enrique Galang, regional director of the Philippine National Police in Southern Tagalog.

EPPI was incorporated in December 1994 as a subsidiary company which is 100 percent owned by Seiko Epson Corporation of Japan.

In September 1995, EPPI set up a plant in Cabuyao for the manufacture of mini-printers.