Roundtable with Ms HK Yu PSM

On Friday 21 March 2023, the Perth USAsia Centre was privileged to host Ms HK Yu, Australian Ambassador to the Philippines for a roundtable discussion with representatives from business, government and academia.

Australia and the Philippines share a longstanding relationship underpinned by defence cooperation, development assistance, trade and investment links, and people-to-people ties.

The people-to-people relationship between Australia and the Philippines is particularly strong. Australia is home to a Philippines diaspora of 400,000 people, and Australia is the number one destination for Philippines students. This provides a solid foundation on which to build further cooperation between the two countries.

The Philippines is located in an Indo-Pacific hotspot – with Taipei only 200 kilometres north, and the South China Sea immediately to the west. In this strategic context, 2023 will see Australia and the Philippines step up their defence engagement though the Australian Defence Forces’ Indo-Pacific Endeavour, focusing closely on exercises in Southeast Asia with strong participation from the Philippines.

With a strong economic growth rate and a rapidly growing population, Australia’s relationship with the Philippines will only prove to become more valuable in years to come.