Philippines to prioritize trade ties with US over North Korea

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines is willing to cut all trade activities with North Korea should the United States wish its ally to do so in line with the ongoing scuffle between the two nations.

Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said the country will prioritize trade relations with the US over North Korea should the country be forced to choose between the two following a recent threat by US President Donald Trump that he would stop trade with any economy doing business with the rogue state.

Trump’s warning came after North Korea claimed to have tested a hydrogen bomb last Sunday.

“If and when President Trump will adopt, policy, we will prioritize trade with the US,” Lopez told The STAR.

“We have a huge business with US. They are our third largest trade partner. We need to maintain and even strengthen that,” he added.

Philippine Exporters Confederation Inc. president Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr. told The STAR that the Philippines should indeed prioritize its trade relationship with the US, given its magnitude.

Ortiz-Luis said Philippine export volume to North Korea is too small, composed likely of one or two companies shipping electronic parts.

Data from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Observatory of Economic Complexity showed the Philippines is among the trade partners of North Korea, with imports from the Philippines amounting to $53.2 million in 2015.

The Philippines’ receipts from exports to US, meanwhile, were valued at $9.02 billion while payment for imports totaled $7.47 billion in 2015, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority showed.

“We should not be too worried about that. What may be lost in terms of exports is too small or it may be too small for the US to even take a look at it,” Ortiz-Luis said.

Philippines backs UN

The Philippines also supports all United Nations resolutions and calls on countries to take appropriate actions, including sanctions, on North Korea following Pyongyang’s nuclear test.

“The Philippines is always supportive of UNSC resolutions,” Foreign Affairs spokesman Robespierre Bolivar said, referring to the United Nations Security Council.

Bolivar made the statement in relation to Trump’s threat which, reports said, were widely interpreted to be a reference to China.

Beijing, however, is unwilling to take drastic actions against North Korea.

CNNMoney reports that China is involved in 90 percent of North Korea’s foreign trade. 

The latest serious developments require a comprehensive response in order to break the cycle of provocations from North Korea, according to UN Undersecretary-General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman.

In an emergency Council meeting, Feltman said that “such a response must include wise and bold diplomacy to be effective.”

US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley said that her delegation will formulate a draft resolution on strengthening sanctions against North Korea.

Last Sunday, the Philippines expressed grave concern over the detonation by North Korea of a powerful nuclear device that it claimed was a hydrogen bomb, saying Pyongyang’s testing limited the options for meaningful dialogue. – With Pia Lee-Brago