South Korea signals counter-China ambitions with Philippines visit by Yoon

This marks the first state visit by a South Korean president to the Philippines since 2011, a milestone highlighted by Seoul’s ambassador to Manila, Lee Sang-hwa. He described the trip as a “pivotal moment” in the 75-year diplomatic relationship between the two nations, which was “expected to further elevate” their “already robust” ties on various fronts, including regional and international issues.

It reflects South Korea’s growing commitment to putting its Indo-Pacific strategy into practice, according to geopolitical analyst Don McLain Gill, an international-studies lecturer at De La Salle University in Manila.