S'pore's deputy PM to visit RP

S'pore's deputy PM to visit RP

PHILIPPINES: Singapore's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defense Tony Tan was to arrive on Monday for a three-day official visit to boost bilateral trade ties and cooperation on terrorism, the Philippine defense ministry announced.

Tan is to meet his Filipino counterpart Angelo Reyes and call on President Gloria Arroyo before departing on Thursday.

Tan's visit "will provide an opportunity for high-level exchange of views between the two countries on bilateral and regional security issues, especially the growing concern in the Southeast Asian region over the threat of terrorism," the ministry said in a statement on Sunday.

The two countries regularly share military intelligence.

The visit comes amid heightened concerns of terror attacks on the Philippines over the Christmas holidays, and "credible" threats received by the Australian and Canadian embassies that have prompted them to shutter indefinitely.

In Oct. 23 people including a U.S. serviceman were killed in a series of bomb attacks in Manila and in the southern Philippines. -- AFP