President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has expressed his interest in unlocking opportunities to enhance the Philippines’ relations with Russia, particularly in trade, tourism, and agriculture.

In an interview with Russia Today on Thursday on the sidelines of the ASEAN-Russia Commemorative Summit in Kazan, Russia, Marcos said the two countries have yet to fully maximize the potential of their bilateral relations.

He said Manila and Moscow are “playing catch-up” to strengthen their cooperation in traditional and emerging areas with “a great deal of potential for growth.”

“The potentials are really quite remarkable. There are huge areas that did not exist before that now exist, and the traditional areas in which we see that there’s a great deal of potential for growth still,” he said.

“So, it’s time to maximize the use of that. And I think that we have already identified a great many areas where there are quite good potentialities that we think will be worth exploring and worth developing. And we are very optimistic that they will give us good results in the future.”

Marcos noted that while the ties between the Philippines and Russia have steadily expanded over the years, economic cooperation remains below its potential.

He described the 50-year diplomatic relations between the two nations as having gone through “a mixed bag,” but stressed that ties have endured despite shifting global geopolitics.

“The world has turned many, many times since then and many changes have come in terms of geopolitics and the power structure in the whole world. But nonetheless, I think the Philippines-Russia relationship has endured through all of that,” Marcos said.

He said recent engagements during his working visit to Russia have helped identify untapped areas of cooperation.

He expressed optimism that the planned expansion of engagement would lead to “good results down the road,” particularly as both countries adjust to a multipolar global environment.

“Because in a very real way, we are starting from, not quite a clean sheet of paper, but not and not a full sheet of paper. So, there’s so much room to grow. And that’s why the optimism is there,” Marcos said.

“And we have begun to recognize what are the areas that we can do partnerships with Russia, in what are the commonalities in terms of the direction and what we would like to develop economically, politically, and culturally, and again, people-to-people exchanges. So, it really is a very wide road that we could go down.”

Direct flights to boost tourism, trade

Marcos also welcomed the planned launch of direct flights between Russia and the Philippines, saying improved connectivity is crucial to boosting tourism and business exchanges.

He noted that the main constraint in tourism growth is not in demand but in accessibility.

He said direct flights would remove inefficiencies in travel routes, easing access to regional destinations.

Marcos expressed confidence that direct air links would significantly increase Filipino and Russian travelers between the two countries.

“And that’s something, that that’s been the effect of our policy of developing regional airports because Manila is getting very, very crowded and there is absolutely no need for people to go through Manila if they don’t have to,” he said.

“So, the more flights you have, the more people travel. And of course, we have to accompany that with arrangements between our two countries so that we are able to make it easier for people to travel back and forth.”

Strengthening the agri sector

Marcos also stressed that agriculture remains a major pillar of Philippine-Russian cooperation, particularly in augmenting agricultural inputs, such as fertilizer, amid global supply disruptions.

The Philippines is seeking stable and long-term partnerships to increase fertilizer supply, he said, noting that Russia is expected to play a “very important part” in ensuring stability.

He also highlighted opportunities in smart agriculture and technology transfer.

“And Russia has great many examples from which we can learn. And your experience is something that we can learn from,” Marcos said.

The Philippines, he said, is also seeking to expand exports of agricultural products, particularly tropical fruits, to Russia. (PNA)