SAN FRANCISCO – Upon the invitation of the San Francisco Fleet Week Association, the Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel Romualdez was a special guest during the Senior Leaders Seminar held within the San Francisco Fleet Week last October 9, aboard USS Tripoli, the largest vessel on display during the 44th Annual San Francisco Fleet Week.
Ambassador Romualdez participated in a fireside chat on the Philippines and its role in a free and open Indo-Pacific region. During the dialogue, the Ambassador highlighted that the Philippines is on the frontline of efforts to defend the rules-based international order. On the West Philippine Sea, he stated that the Philippine position is firmly anchored on the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and the 2016 Arbitral Award on the South China Sea, and that the country has undertaken several steps including preventive diplomacy and dialogue. He added that the Philippines continues to engage with like-minded states on the issue and remains committed to modernizing the Philippine Armed Forces.
Ambassador Romualdez was accompanied by Consul General Neil Frank Ferrer and Consul Rowena Pangilinan-Daquipil.
