TOKYO, Japan – President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo called today on all nations in Asia to move forward together to eradicate terrorism.

Speaking at the Ninth International Conference on "The Future of Asia" at the Imperial Hotel here this morning, the President stressed that like the fear on which it feeds, terrorism can be contagious and it will not be contained unless a comprehensive approach for defeating it in Asia is agreed upon.

"By deepening our interdependence, by facilitating all kinds of interaction, and by raising the costs of conflict, regional economic integration can help us preserve the peace in East Asia, just as it has done in the case of Europe," the President said in her speech before the conference sponsored by Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei), Japan’s leading business and financial newspaper.

She stressed that it is in everyone’s interests to support efforts to win the war against terrorism wherever and whenever these battles break out.

"We owe it to ourselves to move forward together to eradicate terrorism and rebuild those regions of the world affected by terrorism on a foundation of peace, goodwill and prosperity," the President said.

The President also said that the early implementation of the road map to peace in the Middle East would help improve the situation.

The President was one of three leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) who addressed the forum. The other two are Prime Ministers Mahathir Mohamad of Malaysia and Thaksin Shinawatra of Thailand.

This is the second time the President addressed the Nikkei forum. Last year, she delivered the keynote address during the eighth conference.

The President expounded on the Philippine experience, saying that in Mindanao there are pockets of terrorism that "we are wiping out."

The President maintained that supporters of this terrorism are not confined within the Philippine borders.

Because of this, she said that Philippines must work with friends from the region and around the world to achieve lasting peace.

She said that it is in the national interest to welcome assistance.

"We continue to rely on Malaysia’s support to our peace process in the Southern Philippines," she said, likewise thanking Thailand for helping the Philippines build its air battle capability.

She said the Philippines and the United States have a mutual defense treaty that governs military cooperation. This has been in effect for 50 years and guides both countries’ mutual involvement, she said.

"We have had regular and joint military exercises throughout that relationship and continue to do so," the President added, underscoring the need to understand that the Philippines Constitution forbids foreign troops from engaging in combat in the country.

"There will be no US combat activity in the Philippines, just training and security assistance," she said.

According to the President, majority of the people of the Philippines support US troops in the country as long as they are under its command, and their efforts help the government wipe out terrorism.

She stated that she has nothing to apologize for, for protecting the Philippine people from wanton terrorists, and she welcomed international assistance to root out terrorists and bring renewed economic prosperity to the country’s most impoverished areas.

The Nikkei conference is an annual event to deepen understanding between Japan and Asian nations. First held in 1995, the conference invites high and ministerial level officials and top corporate leaders throughout the region to discuss issues in Asia and to share the visions of the future.

This conference is part of the President Macapagal-Arroyo's working visit here.

Tomorrow, the President is scheduled to meet Japan’s Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to discuss various terrorism and security issues affecting the region.

She said this is important, considering that the threat of terrorism continues after the Iraq war and the possibility of global instability because of the North Korean crisis.

TOKYO, Japan – President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo said today the current Korean crisis is both a challenge and a great opportunity for multilateral diplomacy.

Talking about the role of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) in the Genesis of a New Asian Order at the Ninth International Conference on the Future of Asia at the Imperial Hotel here, the President expressed the fervent hope that the nuclear genie can be contained, as has been done in Ukraine and Belarus which were persuaded to give up their nuclear weapons programs.

"We hope that Japan, South Korea, and the United States, Russia and the European Union will be able to convince North Korea to do the same and to dismantle its weapons of mass destruction," she said, welcoming the talks among North Korea, the United States and China.

She pointed out that these talks, while still in the initial stages, have healed the strains in the relationship between the US and Korea and strengthened the alliance between Japan and the US.

"They have also allowed China to be a major constructive player in the region’s security," she added.

The President likewise commended China’s efforts at the start of the trilateral meeting, as she expressed the hope that it will continue to play an important role, commensurate to its growing economic importance, in resolving security and political issues in East Asia.

Given the largely undefined security relations among China, Japan and the US, the President said their interaction would result in a decentralized and multipolar regional order.

The President said that the Asean Regional Forum (ARF) is now the necessary linchpin for security and political dialogue in the region, "because the major individual country players still have to resolve important differences and suspicions among themselves," she said.

The President said that with the consent of its members, ARF could evolve from mainly a confidence-building body into an institution that can handle conflict resolution.

Politically, the President said the Philippines represents the closest Asean border to Korea, and Japan remains deeply concerned about peace on the peninsula, particularly a nuclear-free peninsula.

"That is my position," the President said, expressing the belief that the issue can be resolved peacefully, although it will require regional as well as international cooperation.

Aside from President Macapagal-Arroyo, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mohamad, and Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra were the other keynote speakers at the opening today of the international conference sponsored by the Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei), Japan’s leading business and financial newspaper.

As it is Japan-Asean Exchange Year, Nikkei has organized a special round-table discussion that saw Prime Minister Mahathir, President Macapagal-Arroyo and Prime Minister Thaksin examine some of the issues most relevant to the East Asian region.

This was the first time in the history of the event that there was such a session.

Since 1996, Asean Plus Three – referring to the 10 Asean member-countries plus Japan, China and South Korea – has provided a forum for discussing matters of regional importance. The other Asean countries, aside from the Philippines, Thailand and Malaysia, are Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei Darussalam, Myanmar, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos.

TOKYO – President Gloria Macapagl-Arroyo said today it is the dawn of a new age in Asia as Japan, China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) come together seeking greater economic cooperation and integration.

The Philippines welcomes this development, particularly as it has seen its exports to its regional neighbors growing by leaps and bounds, said the President in her address before the Ninth International Conference on "The Future of Asia" at the Imperial Hotel here.

"We are brimming with confidence at the role we can play to assert the economic might of the region," she said in the forum organized by Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei), Japan’s leading business and financial newspaper.

The President said that Japan, China and Asean form an economic sphere to rival Europe and North America. Asean is composed of the Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, Myanmar, Brunei Darussalam, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam.

The President told the gathering of Asia’s government and corporate leaders that she is an advocate for broad-based economic engagement with the world, for the Philippines as well as its neighbors.

She expressed the belief that more trade makes for less conflict and more interdependence as long as the trade expansion genuinely lifts all partners equally.

"But as developed and developing countries alike know to be true, the benefits of globalization are not all apparent, and they are not all positive," the President said.

The President pointed out that this poses a problem in a democracy like the Philippines.

"As the Philippines comes down on the side of trade, we understand that at the same time, we must manage the transition well with our poor in order to gain their political support for additional political and economic reforms down the road," she said.

The President said that the short-term necessities will be offset in the longer term by a strong Philippine economy able to dismantle its non-competitive sectors and fully join a fair global trading system.

The President, however, said that the Philippines will only be planting aspiration for economic integration and security cooperation on barren soil if it does not also collectively cooperate on human security, on basic human needs like shelter, food, education and employment, or on sustainable development.

In this regard, the President commended Japan’s active role in the reconstruction of countries that have experienced conflict, such as Afghanistan, East Timor and Sri Lanka, regions such as the Philippines’ southernmost island of Mindanao, and the Indonesia province of Aceh.

The President pointed out that in many ways, the Philippines is still recovering from the effects of the Asian financial crisis.

"It is crucial, therefore, for the Japanese economy to recover its dynamism and to act as an engine of global growth," she said.

The President stated that the challenges that the East Asian countries face necessitate greater interaction and cooperation, such as the SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) epidemic, which she said in a very short period has become a really serious scourge to Asian economies.

The President, however, said that as in the 1997 Asian financial crisis when the countries faced a challenge together, they can overcome it.

The President recalled that at that time, Thailand and Indonesia were financially assisted by Japan and China, while the Republic of Korea received assistance from Japan.

In the current SARS crisis, the first donors have once again been Japan and China, she said.

The President stressed that East Asian economic integration is not good for East Asians alone. "In this global village, growth and development are like waves that can animate all shores," she said.

For the global race against poverty, the President said that marginalization and underdevelopment is not fought nor won by competing teams. "It is rather like a relay where every economy is free to join the sole team pitted against the sole opponent, the clock," she said.

The more sprinters there are in a team, the greater is the prize to be shared by everyone, the President said.

For achieving development, non-participation or isolation is a losing option, she said. "For achieving peace and security, isolation is another name for failure," she added.

President Macapagal-Arroyo and Prime Ministers Mahathir bin Mohamad of Malaysia and Thaksin Shinawatra of Thailand were the keynote speakers of the Nikkei conference on "The Future of Asia."

Nikkei has held this event annually around the same time of the year since 1995 with the goal of deepening mutual understanding among the people of the Asian region.

TOKYO – President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today said that it is her role to do everything in her power to free Filipinos, whether they are Christians or Muslims, from the grip of terrorism and a life of fear.

Speaking at a special round-table discussion that saw President Macapagal-Arroyo, Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and former Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto examine some of the issues relevant to the East Asian Region, the Filipino leader stressed and agreed with Prime Minister Mahathir that terrorism is not a religion.

"Terrorism is a criminal offense," she said.

The President added that in the Philippines, her government has been cracking down on terrorists, whether they are Muslims or Christians, pagans, Protestants or atheists.

"We have been cracking down on those responsible for bombings and other brutal acts on innocent people regardless of what their religion is," the President said.

The President said terrorism should be fought at its source, in its recruiting grounds.

"What I know is that whatever is the fundamental cause of terrorism, in the Philippines the recruits to terrorism come from the poorest provinces in our country," she said.

"If we are going to root out terrorism, we must fight poverty," the President said, pointing to Mindanao as having received the most attention now with regard to development money, including official development assistance.

"It so happens that the areas where terrorism is rife…are also the poorest provinces in the country," she said, underscoring the need to have a regional development strategy to bring development to those poorest areas of Mindanao.

The President, however, emphasized that Mindanao is the faster-growing island compared to the mainland of Luzon.

"But in that fast growing island, you have these pockets of poverty and it is in these pockets of poverty that the terrorists are able to find their willing recruits," she said.

TOKYO – President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo assured Japanese investors in the Philippines last night that the government has been instituting reforms and taking decisive steps to make the investment climate and business environment better and more conducive to growth and expansion.

In her dinner meeting with the chief executive officers (CEOs) of Japanese firms doing business in the Philippines on the second day of her three-day working visit to Japan, the President said her government considers the assessment of the business and economic leaders seriously.

"We would like to make the Philippine environment for you to be easy to invest in," she said, expressing her appreciation for the Japanese business leaders’ participation and involvement in the Philippine economy.

The President told the Japanese business leaders that for the first five months of this year, the gross national product (GNP) grew at 5.6 percent, exceeding the official forecast of 4.3-4.8 percent while gross domestic product (GDP) grew at 4.5 percent. (GDP is the value of goods and services produced in the country at a given time. The GNP is GDP plus income from abroad.)

She also announced that a 15-percent discount will be granted starting next month on electric bills of companies having 1,000 kilowatt hours or more of power consumption.

"This discount on incremental consumption is being offered while the Luzon grid is experiencing an excess in electricity brought about by the operation of the San Roque Multipurpose Project in Pangasinan," Energy Secretary Vicente Perez, Jr. explained.

The President also encouraged the Japanese businessmen to investment in the power sector, particularly in natural gas, as the country will be needing some 6,000 megawatts of power in the next 10 years. The President mentioned two power plants for privatization – the Sucat Power Plant in Metro Manila and the one in Limay, Bataan.

The President also urged the Japanese businessmen to invest in car manufacturing, specially in CBUs (completely built units).

The 20 Japanese CEOs who had a dinner meeting with the President at the Miyabi Room of the Imperial Palace last night included Fujio Cho, president of the Toyota Motor Corporation; Koichi Fukushima, president of the Sumitomo Metal Minig, Co.; Masayuki Matsushita, vice chairman of the board of the Matsushita Electric Industrial Co.; Fumio Urano, president of PENTAX Corporation; Sadao Morimoto,vice president of JGC Corporation; Yasuo Morimoto, senior executive vice president and director of the Toshiba Corporation; Seiji Hanaoka, executive vice president of the Seiko Epson Corporation; Yoshitsugu Aoyama, executive vice president of the IBIDEN Co. Ltd.; Yoshihiro Kuwata, executive vice president of Hitachi Ltd.; Rokuichi Yamada, chairman of Sankyo Seiki Mfg., Co.; Shinji Yoko, senior vice president and member of the board TDK Corporation; Yoichiro Furuse, executive vice president and CEO of Sanyo Electric Co.; Nobuyuki Hirabayashi, senior advisor of the Tsuneishi Corporation; Fumio Sudo, president of JFE Corporation; Yoshihide Munekuni, chairman, Honda Motor Co; Steven Torok, executive vice president, Mitsubishi Motors Corporation; Fusahiko Hasegawa, president of the Advanced Technology and Systems Co.; Kazuo Motoyama, advisor of the Yokohama Rubber Co.; Kozo Sakaino, executive vice president of Isuzu Motors, Ltd; and Toshihiro Suzuki, vice chairman of the Yazaki Corporation.

The President’s economic managers who joined the meeting included Trade and Industry Secretary Manuel A. Roxas II, Finance Secretary Jose Isidro Camacho, Energy Secretary Perez, and Tomas Alcantara and Rizalino Navarro. First Gentleman Atty. Jose Miguel Arroyo was also present at the dinner.

The President and her party arrived at the Haneda Airport here at 6:30 p.m. yesterday from a state visit to South Korea.

TOKYO -- President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today said she supports the Asian bond and Japan’s emerging role not only in the economic life but also in the security of the East Asian region.

Speaking at a Japan-Asean Exchange Year in 2003 round-table discussion that saw her, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra discussing some of the issues relevant to their region, the President said it is a good sign that the currency swap arrangement between Japan, China, Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand have already totaled more than $31 billion.

"This, plus the fact East Asians hold more than 50 percent of international reserves, augurs well for the continuation of a currency swap arrangement and moving towards the Asian bond market," the President said.

"Because, after all, there is greater East Asian inter-trade now," the President said, emphasizing that there is no need to trade in dollars with one another.

The President said that East Asian countries should trade in their own currencies, and also make their own currencies move towards the Asian bond.

"While we are talking about the security situation as the area of most concern now as we move in this new age of Asia, these economic and financial arrangements will help improve the security of Asia and will make us operate regionally in a more productive way," the President said.

Asked about her views on Japan’s role in sending peacekeeping forces to East Timor or to Iraq, the President reiterated that Asia should now be more responsible for its own economic and political security.

She said that Japan, having contributed 60 percent of the region’s gross domestic product (GDP), should have a greater role not only in the economic security but also in its political security, as she stressed her support to the legislation that is being discussed to enable to empower Japan to be involved in these matters.

"It is a welcome development, and I think it will help us solve the fear of a new age of American unilateralism," the President said.

The President pointed out that a strong Japan, along with a strong China and the inevitably strong US and strong Asean, can really make East Asian a multi-polar region. "We can work together as equal partners for our mutual self-interest and the interest of the region," she said

This is the second time for President Macapagal-Arroyo to address this Nikkei International Conference on the Future of Asia.

She delivered the keynote address during the Nikkei’s 8^th conference held in May 2002.

Impeachment Complaint

If you don’t mind, we do not wish to comment any further on the impeachment complaint. From our end, we find further discussions on the matter regressive and counter-productive. This issue only tends to distract the Presidency on the more important problems that have to be attended to. Just let the House of Representatives handle it in accordance with its internal rules.

As to his claims that he is still the president, let me just ask: If that were so, why was he not invited by President Bush?

PGMA as Candidate

TOKYO -- Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo cited here today the need to update the United Nations (UN) Security Council's mandate for the world body to become effective at peacemaking.

Addressing Asian leaders at the opening of the Nikkei Ninth International Conference on "The Future of Asia" here, the President said unless the security mandate of the UN is updated, "it would continue to limp forward."

"Perhaps the greatest collateral benefit of the Iraq war that should not be squandered is the opportunity to reform the UN and make it a more effective development agent and peacemaker," she stressed.

The President said it was for this reason that during the Cold War, nations resorted to regional and bilateral arrangements such as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the Warsaw Pact and a network of other security alliances.

The President nonetheless said the UN and the multilateralism that it represents would continue to play a crucial role in achieving peace in the world.

She particularly cited the case of Kosovo where the US intervened as the leader of a coalition of the willing but "post-conflict reconstruction was implemented under UN auspices."

"One country by sheer might may win the war, but it will take a concert of countries to win the peace," she said.

The Chief Executive said negotiations with Russia in 1999 also produced an accord that made the UN the immediate source of humanitarian aid and civil authority after the war.

She also pointed out that if the UN did not exist, the world still needs an international body just like it.

She said the UN has served as a supremely vital forum in addressing global social, economic and cultural concerns for many developing countries.

"After all, many transnational threats to our societies, such as global warming, the spread of new diseases and drug and arms trafficking, are global in scope and cannot be managed individually, or even regionally," she said.

The President noted that like security, economic endeavors, are increasingly becoming regionalized. "The contributions of each country in East Asia, whether large or small, are vital to regional peace," she said.

She said the ability of any nation to respond nationally to security threats is crucial to contributing positively to the maintenance of regional security.

The Nikkei event is an annual conference aimed to deepen understanding between Japan and Asian nations.

Held first in 1995, the conference invites high and ministerial level officials and top corporate leaders throughout the region to discuss issues in Asia and to share their visions of the future.

Among the 13 speakers of its ninth conference are the President, Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad of Malaysia, Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra of Thailand, and former Japan Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto

This is the second time for President Arroyo to address this Nikkei conference. She also addressed it last year.

Filipino and American officials agreed last night to hold another meeting to discuss the terms of reference (TOR) for the proposed Balikatan 03-1 military exercises in Southern Philippines this year.

Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Avelino Cruz, along with Defense Undersecretary Feliciano Gacis and Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary King Sorreta, held an informal and preliminary meeting last night in Manila with visiting US Pacific Command chief Admiral Thomas Fargo and US Ambassador Francis Ricciardone to thresh out the ground rules for the Balikatan 03-1.

In their meeting, both sides agreed that arrangements would be made by the US Embassy for representatives of the US Defense Department to come to Manila next week to further discuss the TOR for the proposed Balikatan 03-1.

Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye said President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo wanted to make sure that the TOR for the proposed joint military exercises in Sulu this year meets the Constitutional requirements before its final signing by both parties.

Bunye added the Office of the President would consult with the Department of Defense and Foreign Affairs before signing the final TOR with the US.

Earlier, the President said the TOR for the proposed Balikatan can be resolved in a manner that would meet the sincere desire of the US to help out in the fight against terrorism and the constraints posed by the Constitution on the extent of American troops’ involvement in the exercise.