Ukraine seeks to make Philippines a top three Asean trade partner
Ukraine is pushing to lift its bilateral trade volume with the Philippines, which remains modest when compared to its other Southeast Asian trading partners, while also pushing to connect more businesses between Manila and Kyiv.
In a media roundtable on Monday, Ukrainian Ambassador to the Philippines Yuliia Fediv said bilateral trade stood at just over $60 million at the end of 2025, a level she described as “not that high” compared with other Southeast Asian markets.
This places the Philippines behind Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore and Vietnam in terms of trade with Ukraine.
“For us, it’s important to move the Philippines into the first three because the potential is there, the interest is there,” Fediv told reporters. “I hope that in three years, we can already talk about hundreds of millions in trade, and not only in agriculture and electronics.”
Trade between the two countries currently favors the Philippines, accounting for about 70 percent of shipments.
Philippine exports to Ukraine consist largely of processed food products such as banana chips and small electronics, while Ukraine exports agricultural products including wheat flour, soybean products, sunflower oil and pharmaceuticals.
Fediv attributed the relatively low level of trade partly to the late establishment of Ukraine’s embassy in Manila, which only opened in December 2024.
Unlike in several neighboring Southeast Asian markets, Ukraine currently has no major businesses operating in the Philippines, she said, while Philippine companies also have yet to establish a presence in Ukraine.
Due to war with Russia?
Fediv added that the war in Ukraine could have been impacting trade between the two countries.
“Sometimes it’s controversial for many businesses in the Philippines that you have the country in war, and at the same time the country which is open to do business with you,” she said. “Sometimes these two pictures should be aligned to understand that it’s possible.”
To accelerate economic engagement, Ukraine appointed a first secretary for economic affairs in April and has been working to connect businesses from both countries through chambers of commerce and industry groups.
There are also ongoing talks for a memorandum of agreement between the country’s largest business group, the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, as well as the Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce.
Fediv said the embassy had also arranged for a Ukrainian business delegation to visit the Philippines in July, with participants expected from the food and beverage, information technology, creative industries and agricultural sectors.
Some Ukrainian firms—especially those involved in agriculture—are also exploring the possibility of using the Philippines as a hub for serving the wider Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) market. On the other hand, she said Ukraine could serve as the Philippines’ low-cost gateway to Europe.
“I see that the Philippines is also moving more to the European markets, and it’s also one of the window of opportunities to explore Ukraine and the Ukrainian market,” she said. “While Ukraine is still on its way to the EU (European Union), the prices will remain a little bit lower than by our EU colleagues.”
Defense cooperation
It remains unclear, however, whether the planned free trade pact between the Philippines and the EU would involve Ukraine, which has yet to become a full-fledged member of the bloc.
Apart from trade, Ukraine is also discussing possible defense cooperation with the Philippines, including the potential coproduction of drones.
Fediv said negotiations for this remain at an early stage, with both governments still working on a memorandum of understanding that would establish the legal framework for future cooperation.
Ukraine was also open to working with the Department of Information and Communications Technology, Department of National Defense and National Security Council for cybersecurity, she added.
Fediv said Ukraine’s minister of foreign affairs is set to visit the Philippines on July 24 for the inaugural Kyiv-Manila Strategic Dialogue, which would tackle maritime security and defense, among others.
Manila has consistently supported Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity.
For instance, the Philippines had voted in favor of all six UN General Assembly Emergency Special Session resolutions on Ukraine since the 2022 invasion, including those demanding Russia’s immediate withdrawal and condemning illegal annexations.
