A session of political consultations between the Sultanate’s Foreign Ministry and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Philippines was held at the Diplomatic Club on Tuesday. The Omani side was led in the session by Dr Ali bin Ahmed al Isa’ee, Acting Under-Secretary of the Foreign Ministry for Diplomatic Affairs, while it was headed from the Philippines side by Evan Garcia, Philippine Foreign Ministry Under-Secretary of Policy. The two sides reviewed aspects of the bilateral relations and ways of enhancing them to serve the common interests of the two friendly countries. They also exchanged viewpoints on several regional and international issues of common concern.
The session was attended from the Omani side by Aflah bin Suleiman al Ta’ee, Head of the ASEAN Department, and officials at the Foreign Ministry while it was attended from the Philippines side by Narciso T Castaneda, Ambassador of Philippines to the Sultanate, and Felipe de Leon Jr, Chairman of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, the official delegation accompanying the guest. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) in the field of cultural cooperation was signed between the Sultanate and the Philippines. The MoU was signed by Shaikh Hamad bin Hilal al Ma’amari, Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Heritage and Culture for Cultural Affairs, and Felipe de Leon Jr. Also on Tuesday, Evan P Garcia and his accompanying delegation visited the Sultan’s Armed Forces (SAF) Museum. — ONA