MANILA, Philippines — Malacañang on Wednesday welcomed as “great news” the 12-day ceasefire agreed upon by the United States and Iran, expressing hope that it would lead to a complete end to hostilities in the Middle East.
“This is great news. We all hope that this war in the Middle East will end as soon as possible. This two-week ceasefire is a good sign, and I hope it continues,” acting Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Secretary Dave Gomez said in Filipino during a radio interview.
Thirty-nine days after American and Israeli forces launched attacks against Iran, the United States has paused strikes just hours before the deadline set by President Donald Trump lapsed.
The reopening of the Strait of Hormuz was cited as a key condition in sealing the ceasefire deal.
Gomez expressed optimism that the next two weeks would see further stabilization in the country’s oil supply and more moderate petroleum prices.
“The first thing we are really watching out for is our oil supply. Even before this ceasefire was announced, our buffer of a 50- to 51-day supply was still pretty healthy. It remained within our pre-war range of a 45- to 60-day buffer,” he said.
“Hopefully, our supply will improve even more. Second, we are looking at prices. We are also monitoring Brent, Dubai, and MOPS (Mean of Platts Singapore), and we hope these will be reflected in pump prices as much as possible so that our countrymen will immediately feel the effects of this ceasefire,” he added.
To cushion the impact of the war in the Middle East—particularly skyrocketing pump prices—the government has declared a state of energy emergency and rolled out various interventions to help the public cope.
These include procuring oil from alternative sources such as Russia, providing fuel subsidies to the transport sector, offering discounted toll fees, and granting free rides, among other measures.