In Manila, Korean President Lee Jae Myung and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. led a bilateral summit aimed at expanding practical cooperation across sectors like nuclear power, key minerals, shipbuilding and AI to deepen their strategic partnership.

The leaders affirmed ongoing momentum in their partnership, with forums such as the Philippines-Korea Business Forum advancing cooperation in shipbuilding, agriculture, medical equipment and related sectors beyond pure commerce.

Participants included Marcos and South Korea’s Yoon Suk Yeol, who participated through a state visit focused on strengthening strategic alignment and concrete cooperation.

They signed ten MOUs spanning defense materials procurement, veterans affairs, agriculture, trade and investment, IP, digital cooperation, digitalization and innovation, Korean language training, cultural exchange and police cooperation, with seven additional MOUs anticipated in shipbuilding, nuclear power, food and medical equipment.

Additional MOUs covered digital technology advancement, defense equipment procurement, agricultural development, IP protection, language instruction, cultural exchanges and law-enforcement cooperation, signaling broad deepening of ties.

Overall, ten MOUs and agreements were signed touching on AI, defense industry, digital tech, trade, agriculture, transnational crime responses, IP, police and culture, illustrating a comprehensive expansion of cooperation.

The talks also touched on Middle East tensions, indicating broader geopolitical considerations beyond the bilateral agenda.

Philippines aims to bring its first nuclear power plant online by 2032, starting at about 1,200 MW and expanding to 4,800 MW by 2050 as part of diversifying its energy mix.

Leaders emphasized supporting a rules-based international order and discussed maritime security amid ongoing geopolitical uncertainty.

Lee described the partnership as resilient to geopolitical uncertainty and fierce tech competition, highlighting strong emotional ties between the peoples despite geographic distance.

They discussed broader strategic cooperation, including shipbuilding synergy, defense modernization and collaboration on critical minerals and nuclear power, with plans to resume and advance nuclear projects and strengthen supply chains.

Both sides agreed to expand cooperation in key minerals and diversify supply chains, with the Philippines as a major nickel producer relevant to batteries.