The Republic of Philippines and Republic of Indonesia vow to strengthen their cooperation on border security.
The 38th Republic of the Philippines-Republic of Indonesia Border Committee Chairmen’s Conference, hosted by the Philippine Government through the Eastern Mindanao Command, was held at the Waterfront Insular Hotel in Lanang on Nov. 19, 2019. The event will culminate today.
Lt. Gen. Felimon Santos Jr., the EastMinCom commander, said the activity aims to strengthen the diplomatic relations of the two countries, especially on border crossing security.
“It seeks to review and strengthen the existing measures to ensure the safe passage of the respective nationals of both countries, to include the protection of fisher folks in the border areas en route to the fishing grounds at high seas,” Santos said.
Both committees agreed to continuously intensify the conduct of coordinated patrol operations, seeking to ensure security and maritime control in both countries’ common borders.
Considering the porous shorelines of the archipelagic domains, both committees also looked into the continuous operationalization of the Border Crossing Stations (BCS) to provide a systematic scheme in closely monitoring the entry and exit of the nationals of both countries.
It is also the intent of both committees to jumpstart the review of the 1975 Border Patrol and Border Crossing Agreements. They seek to recommend amendments of the provisions to be attuned to the prevailing situation in maritime security and terrorism in both countries.
