On June 2, 2011, the Philippines and Russia celebrated an important event - the 35th anniversary of diplomatic relations. This is a milestone in the history of partnership between a dynamically developing country and a world power on the threshold of economic modernization.

The Philippines established official diplomatic relations with the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) in 1976. With the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Russian Federation assumed all obligations and responsibilities for the bilateral agreements signed with the Philippines.

Since 1976, our relations have continuously developed and reached a high level of maturity, which is reflected in the close cooperation of our states in such diverse areas as:-

security, trade and investment, energy, agriculture, labor migration and tourism, as well as an increasing number of top-level visits by government officials and business representatives.

FIRST CONTACTS

To date, Russian archives have preserved historical materials about the first Philippine-Russian contacts. At the beginning of the 19th century, merchant Peter Dobell, who was granted Russian citizenship, made great efforts to develop relations between the Russian Far East and Southeast Asia. He spent many years in the Philippines, which was then a Spanish colony. Dobell was appointed unofficial representative of Russia in Manila, as at that time the Spanish authorities refused to allow Russia to establish an official diplomatic mission in the Philippines.

Dobell's true love for the Philippines and the Filipino people can be clearly traced in his works, especially in his travel notes "Travels and recent observations in China, Manila and the Indo-Chinese Archipelago", published in 1833 in St. Petersburg. The book provides detailed descriptions of the landscape, economy, culture, and literature of the Philippines, including notes on the languages used in the archipelago, especially in those areas of Luzon where the population spoke Tagalog.

PHILIPPINES-A HAVEN FOR "WHITE" RUSSIANS

Currently, only a few Filipinos and Russians know that 6 thousand "white" Russian refugees lived in the Philippines from 1949 to 1951 after they left Communist China. These so-called "white" Russians were opponents of the Bolshevik regime who fled Russia after the 1917 revolution and subsequently settled in China, especially in Shanghai.

While no other country in the world dared to accept "white" Russians, fearing a negative reaction from the USSR, only the Philippines provided them with shelter and opportunity

accommodation. Philippine President Elpidio Quirino was bold enough to accept them. Russian settlers settled on the island of Tubabao, in the city of Giuan, which is now located in the province of Eastern Samar. Subsequently, Elpidio Quirino worked tirelessly to ensure that other countries also accepted "white" Russians. The latter eventually managed to emigrate to the United States, Australia, France, Germany, Canada and some countries in South America.

To this exciting but little-known historical fact, the Filipino writer Ricardo Suarez Soler dedicated his article "The Island of Refuge", which was published in Rogue magazine in 2010. Russian sculptor Grigory Pototsky, who visited Manila in March 2011, presented one of his sculptural works to the descendants of President Kirino in the presence of official representatives of the Russian Embassy, the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Department of Trade and Industry of the Philippines.

PHILIPPINE-SOVIET / RUSSIAN RELATIONS

At the beginning of the 20th century, Russians developed a great interest in Filipino languages and literature. By the 1930s, the central themes of Russian studies of Filipino literature were the works and lives of prominent Filipinos, most notably Dr. Jose P. Rizal. The book written by Alexander Huber, "Jose Rizal" was published in 1937 as part of the series" The Lives of Wonderful People", which was revived by the great Russian writer Maxim Gorky. Written in collaboration with O. K. Rykovskaya, Huber's book was the first work to tell in detail about the life of the national hero of the Philippines-in social, political and creative terms. Later, in 1982 and 1985, respectively, Professor Igor Podberezsky published the monograph "The Evolution of the work of Jose Rizal" and the biography "Jose Rizal". Other works of famous literary masters Amado Hernandez, Nick Joaquin, F. Zionil Jose, Jose Garcia Villa and N. Gonzalez translated by famous Soviet poets also became widely known to Soviet readers. In total, about 700 books and articles on the Philippines were published in the USSR.

With the establishment of diplomatic relations between our countries

The two countries have started a long road to mutually beneficial, gradually expanding and strengthening partnership. Both countries have made remarkable strides over the past three and a half decades, especially in the areas of defense and security, trade and investment, tourism, culture, and labor migration.

It should be noted that during the entire period of official Philippine-Russian relations, three Philippine presidents visited Russia. The first was Ferdinand Marcos. He arrived in Moscow in 1976 and initiated diplomatic relations between the two countries. The second president, Fidel Ramos, visited Russia in 1997. As a result of his visit, Russia and the Philippines adopted a Joint Declaration. The third president was Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, who came to Russia in June 2009 at the invitation of President Dmitry Medvedev to participate in the 13th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. Her visit was a long-awaited incentive for launching joint actions and implementing new initiatives in various areas of cooperation.

To date, the Philippines and Russia have signed 31 agreements in the areas of defense and security, trade and investment, tourism, culture and education, inter-parliamentary exchange, and regional cooperation. Recently signed agreements include the Protocol on Cultural Cooperation, which served as the legal basis for holding celebrations on the occasion of the 35th anniversary of our friendship and bilateral cooperation, the Agreement on Air Communication and the Memorandum of Agreement on the Exchange of Military Delegations.

In addition to the above-mentioned intergovernmental agreements, relations between the peoples of our countries have also significantly expanded. In the field of tourism, Russia remains a huge potential market for the Philippines, as 12 million Russians travel around the world every year. In 2010, 14,642 Russian tourists visited the Philippines. They made up the largest flow of tourists from Eastern Europe. Russians preferred the beach resorts of Boracay Island.

Since 2006, Russian students and postgraduates studying the country and languages have been studying at the University of the Philippines, the country's main public university, for a semester, a year, or for the entire course of study. These ongoing

student exchanges help develop more open, tolerant and progressive personalities.

Filipino and Russian businessmen contribute to the expansion of trade and increase the share of capital investment through our Chambers of Commerce and Industry. In 2010, export trade between the Philippines and Russia totaled $ 486,171,695, making Russia the Philippines ' 44th largest trading partner.

BILATERAL COOPERATION

We have to take the next important step in realizing the potential of expanded cooperation in the areas of trade and investment, defense, energy, tourism, culture, education, science and technology.

The Philippines ' advantage lies in its well-developed manufacturing sector, which allows the country to export food products and electronic equipment. We invite Russian companies to move their production facilities to the Philippines and make the country a gateway to Southeast Asia, especially after ASEAN becomes an economic community in 2015.

Representatives of the military leadership of our countries have begun to cooperate through organizing exchange visits and through the appointment of non-resident military attaches, who will eventually be assigned to serve in both capitals.

As the Philippines gradually increases the need to increase the number of energy sources and ways to use it, we are pleased to cooperate with Russia, which has expert knowledge and extensive experience in the field of energy, as well as a large variety of energy sources. We look forward to partnership in the field of energy security and development. Cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy should also be considered.

In view of the fact that the Filipino community has been living in Russia since the 1970s, our country also hopes to hold preliminary meetings regarding the possibility of concluding an employment agreement.

MULTILATERAL COOPERATION

The Republic of the Philippines has long been an active participant in the international arena: the country has proven itself to be a productive and purposeful partner in developing bilateral cooperation and as a good neighbor aimed at reaching consensus with the countries of the region. We are active in the UN, APEC and relevant structures of ASEAN and the ASEAN Regional Forum.

Our ties with Russia were strengthened when the Philippines became the coordinator of the ASEAN - Russia Dialogue in 2006-2009, which resulted in the opening of the ASEAN Center in Moscow in June 2010. The Philippines presided over the ASEAN summits and ministerial meetings in 2006, when Russia once again began to pursue a policy of active participation in the processes taking place in the Asia-Pacific region, through closer political and economic cooperation with the countries of the region.

The Philippines and Russia share common views on regional and global threats and challenges such as terrorism, nuclear disarmament, international crime, global epidemics, and climate change.

We are grateful to Russia for its support and cooperation during the successful presidency of the Philippines at the Review Conference on the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) in May 2010, which resulted in the unanimous adoption of a comprehensive and promising document by the participating countries.

Since the Philippines and Russia signed the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), they have consistently supported this important principle of the global nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament regime. In this regard, the Philippines also signed the Global Initiative to Combat Acts of Nuclear Terrorism, which was launched by Russia and the United States in July 2006.

We hope that with Russia's accession to the East Asia Summit in 2011, the summit participants will focus on such important issues as strengthening regional security, energy security and cooperation, innovation and modernization, climate change, and disaster management and mitigation.

FOR THE NEXT 35 YEARS AND BEYOND

Last year's successful change of political leadership in the Philippines, following the election of President Benigno Aquino III, has rekindled interest and hope in building a great and prosperous nation.

With this goal in mind, the Philippines will continue to develop its relations with the international community, especially with friends such as Russia, with which we have made significant progress in various areas of activity over the past three and a half decades of close partnership and cooperation.

Our desire to strengthen the partnership remains unchanged, as it is built on the principles of friendship and promotion of common interests. This foundation was laid by the Philippines and Russia in order for them to further develop relations based on the success of 35 years of cooperation. Together, we can hope that our cooperation will reach new heights in the next 35 years and beyond.

Keywords: 35th anniversary of Russian-Philippine diplomatic relations, Peter Dobell, "Island of Refuge", Erlinda F. Basilio.

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