SINGAPORE, 8 September 2026 – Philippine and Singaporean defense officials met in Singapore for the 9th Philippines-Singapore Defense Policy Dialogue (PS DPD) held on 4 September 2026.

The 9th PS DPD was hosted by Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) Deputy Secretary (Policy) Brigadier General (BG) Frederick Choo and was co-chaired by Department of National Defense Assistant Secretary for Strategic Assessments and International Affairs, Marita I. Yoro.

The DPD serves as a working-level platform to review the progress of the bilateral defense relations, exchange views on regional and global security challenges, and set shared defense priorities.

During the DPD, Assistant Secretary Yoro and BG Choo discussed ways to strengthen military collaboration and reviewed upcoming bilateral engagements between the DND and MINDEF.  Both officials also exchanged views on regional security developments,  and expressed commitment to further strengthening collaboration within multilateral frameworks such as the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting (ADMM) and ADMM-Plus, as current and upcoming chair of ASEAN in 2027.

While in Singapore, Assistant Secretary Yoro met with Permanent Secretary (Defense) Mr. Joseph Leong on 2 September and paid a courtesy call on Philippine Ambassador Medardo G. Macaraig at the Embassy in Singapore on 3 September. She was joined by other officials from the DND and Armed Forces of the Philippines. 

Philippines and Singapore enjoy warm and friendly bilateral defense partnership. Both countries conduct regular exchanges in areas of mutual interest such as counter-terrorism, and have also worked closely to strengthen regional defense cooperation on various multilateral platforms. /END