President Marcos Arrives in Cebu for 48th ASEAN Summit — Schedule Compressed to 3 Days (May 6-8); Senior Officials' Meetings Begin; 20,000 Delegates Expected

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. arrived at Mactan-Benito Ebuen Air Base in Cebu on the evening of May 6, 2026, to chair the 48th ASEAN Leaders' Summit. The Presidential Communications Office (PCO) confirmed that the summit schedule had been compressed from the originally planned five days (May 5-9) to three days (May 6-8), with Marcos directing a streamlined agenda to focus on urgent regional priorities. The adjusted schedule: May 6 — Senior Officials' Preparatory Meetings at Dusit Thani Mactan; May 7 — ASEAN Ministerial and Foreign Ministers' meetings at Shangri-La Mactan; May 8 — 48th ASEAN Leaders' Summit plenary at Mactan Expo, Lapu-Lapu City. Marcos declared May 6-8 as special non-working holidays in Lapu-Lapu City and Cordova municipality. Security was at maximum readiness: approximately 10,000 police, 1,000+ AFP personnel, and Presidential Security Command units were deployed across the Cebu tri-city area. Over 20,000 total attendees are expected including representatives of all 10 ASEAN member states plus the EU and 20+ dialogue partners. Singapore's PM Lawrence Wong and Malaysia's PM Anwar Ibrahim (2026 ASEAN Chair) confirmed attendance. The South China Sea Code of Conduct (COC) tops the agenda, though analysts assess final agreement as unlikely in 2026. Myanmar's post-coup political transition — following Min Aung Hlaing's assumption of the presidency in April 2026 — is the summit's most contested procedural question. The ASEAN Summit opens against a backdrop of ongoing Balikatan 2026 exercises (closing May 8), the Sandy Cay 1 confrontation (May 3-6), and the Balikatan SINKEX off Ilocos Norte (May 6). Sunstar Cebu confirmed the schedule compression; PCO bared the final three-day schedule.