President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. is expected to express support for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ (ASEAN) non-confrontational approach to engaging the United States regarding its unilateral import tariffs during the upcoming summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Malaysia will host the May 26- 27, 2025 ASEAN summit and related meetings.

Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Deputy Assistant Secretary Dominic Xavier Imperial said in a press briefing in Malacañang on Thursday that the regional bloc’s response to the unilateral U.S. tariffs will be on the agenda during the leaders’ summit from May 26 to 27.

The ASEAN leaders’ discussion follows the joint statement of ASEAN economic ministers on April 10, in which they committed not to impose retaliatory measures in response to the US tariffs while calling for “frank and constructive dialogue” with the U.S. to address trade-related concerns.

“Under the ASEAN framework, (there are) discussions on that, the details of which are still being discussed and negotiated, and hopefully, we’ll be able to come up with something in more detail after the summit,” Imperial said during the briefing.

“But definitely, (it is included in the) agenda (of) ASEAN, and the President is also looking very much into it,” he added.

Along with multilateral engagements, the Philippines is intensifying bilateral discussions with the US to address the tariff issue.

On May 2, Special Assistant to the President for Investment and Economic Affairs Frederick Go and Trade Secretary Cristina Aldeguer-Roque led talks with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in Washington, D.C.

The United States unilaterally imposed import tariffs ranging from 10% to 49% on several ASEAN countries.

The Philippines is facing a 17 percent tariff on its exports to the US, the second lowest tariff in Southeast Asia. | PND