President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will attend sessions at the United Nations headquarters in New York on March 9 and 10 to call for peace in the Middle East and support the Philippines' bid for a UN Security Council seat. The visit comes amid an escalating conflict in the region that began on February 28 with coordinated US and Israeli strikes on Iran. At least two million Filipinos reside or work in the Middle East.
The Department of Foreign Affairs announced that President Marcos will address two UN sessions in New York: the 70th Commission on the Status of Women, highlighting the Philippines' efforts to protect women's and girls' rights, and a special session of the UN General Assembly. There, he will advocate for the Philippines' non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for 2027-2028, with the election in June 2026. The Philippines last held such a seat in 2004-2005 and has served four times since 1957.
DFA Spokesperson Angelica Escalona stated that the UN is "the most appropriate venue" for Marcos to represent developing countries, call for restraint, respect for international law including the UN Charter and humanitarian law, and a return to negotiations. He will meet UN Secretary General António Guterres to discuss the Middle East situation and reaffirm Manila's commitment to multilateralism. No bilateral meetings are scheduled beyond this, and there will be no engagement with the Filipino community in New York.
The conflict escalated on February 28 when the US and Israel conducted strikes on Iran, killing Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and dozens of senior military figures. Iran retaliated with missiles and drones targeting Israel, US bases in the Gulf, and threatened shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. The DFA estimates the war could last four to eight weeks, based on reports, longer than the previous Israel-Iran confrontation that lasted 12 days. DFA Assistant Secretary Germinia Aguilar-Usudan described it as a protracted and unconventional war. Meanwhile, DND Assistant Secretary Jeffrey Hechanova noted the situation is evolving rapidly, making timelines uncertain.
The DFA estimates 2.4 million overseas Filipino workers in the Middle East. One Filipino, Mary Anne Velasquez De Vera, a 32-year-old caregiver from Pangasinan, was killed by shrapnel from an Iranian missile in Tel Aviv on February 28. About 1,400 OFWs have requested repatriation, and the first batch of 299 from Dubai arrived in Manila on Thursday. Marcos will be accompanied by First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, Foreign Affairs Secretary Theresa Lazaro, and others.