President Noynoy Aquino hoped to visit China by mid-2011

MANILA, Philippines - China and Southeast Asian countries are President Aquino’s priority destinations in his travels next year, which he again hopes to limit.

The President said he hoped to visit China by mid-2011. China, he said, was one of the first countries to invite him for a visit after his inauguration in June.

“I have to do the ASEAN first. My co-heads of states are saying, when are you going to do your ASEAN tour?” Aquino told The STAR in an interview at Malacañang.

He said that while his visits to Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member-states have yet to be firmed up, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore are already on the list.

The President said that in order to save time and cost, he might conduct the visits one after the other, perhaps staying two days in each country, and finish the trip in a week.

“We want a more coherent, more solid bloc. There are so many problems that are common – climate change, human trafficking, protection of our resources, South China Sea, diseases,” Aquino said.

He said he is aware of the importance of the trips even if he is not fond of traveling abroad.

The President secured investments and aid during his visits to the United States in September, Vietnam in October and Japan in November.

He said establishing camaraderie and rapport with other heads of state could fast-track the resolution of various concerns.

The President said leaders could talk about a certain concern for two minutes and come up with an agreement instantly while it could take ministers a month or so to resolve the same concern.

He said there were no discussions yet on another US visit and that arrangements for regular summits and meetings such as the United Nations General Assembly, ASEAN, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation would still have to be worked out.

Meanwhile, China has conveyed its interest in taking part in the administration’s development initiatives next year.

“Next year is going to be a very important year for China and Philippine relations because the new government will press ahead with the economic and social development program in the Philippines. And China will be part of the process,” Chinese Ambassador Liu Jianchao said.

“China would like to be a good partner of the Philippines in working with the Philippines to develop the economic and social undertakings in this country,” he said.

Liu said China is in a good position to be part of the development process, particularly in its areas of expertise like agriculture, mining, infrastructure, power generation and environment protection.

According to Liu, 2011 will be the first year of the implementation of China’s five-year plan for economic and social development.

“And one of the focus of such a program of China’s social and economic development is that we will shift the mode of economic development by strengthening domestic consumption,” he said.

The driving forces in the next five or 10 years of the Chinese economy, he said, would be consumption, investment and exports. With Pia Lee-Brago - By Aurea Calica (Philstar News Service, www.philstar.com)