According to the Presidential Communications Office, the head of State said this during a courtesy visit by the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of India, Pabitra Margherita, to the Malacañan Palace (seat of the Executive).

We plan to elevate bilateral relations. Actually, it’s very interesting and important because in terms of geopolitical issues, so to speak, we used to talk about the Pacific or Asia-Pacific, now it’s the Indo-Pacific, he said.

For her part, Margherita stressed the importance of her visit to Manila, acknowledging the 75 years of diplomatic relations between the two nations.

During her stay in the country, she is expected to pay tribute to the bust of Mahatma Gandhi, known as the “Father of the Indian Nation,” at Miriam College in Manila; she will also meet with members of the Indian diaspora in the Philippines.

The Philippines and India formally established diplomatic relations on November 26, 1949, after Manila and New Delhi gained independence in 1946 and 1947, respectively.

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