President Rodrigo Duterte’s five-day visit to Russia is seen to renew and deepen the Philippines’ bilateral relations with country, Malacanang said yesterday.
Duterte arrived early yesterday morning in Moscow for an official visit at the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin. His first visit there in 2017 was cut short because of the conflict in Marawi City. “Our leader views his latest trip as an auspicious opportunity to deepen our ties with the Russian Federation,” Palace spokesman Salvador Panelo said in a statement. “He further considers this second visit as a good occasion to broaden Philippine-Russia cooperation in a wide range of areas such as trade and economics, defence and military, health and science and technology, among others,” he added.
Panelo said it was under the Duterte administration that the Philippines and Russia witnessed a “dramatic reinvigoration” of formal diplomatic relations since its establishment in 1976.
“The president hopes to have a robust, comprehensive and mutually-beneficial partnership with Russia under President Putin whom our chief executive fondly calls his favourite hero,” Panelo said. 
While in Russia, Duterte will have a bilateral meeting with Putin and will witness the signing of several agreements.
 The president is also scheduled to hold a bilateral meeting with Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, whom he first met on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Summit in Laos in 2016 and later in Manila for the 50th Asean Summit.
Duterte will also interact with Russian business leaders in Moscow to encourage them to invest in the Philippines. To cap off his visit, Panelo said Duterte would touch base with the members of the Filipino community in Russia.