South Korea struck a free trade deal with the Philippines on Tuesday. 

Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo and his Filipino counterpart Ramon Lopez declared that the two sides reached agreement in negotiations for a bilateral free trade agreement and signed a joint statement to that effect. 

The deal comes 28 months after the two nations launched FTA negotiations in June 2019. 

South Korea has been expanding bilateral FTAs with members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations(ASEAN), clinching deals with Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia and Cambodia in recent years. The Philippines is the fifth ASEAN nation to strike a deal with Seoul. 

Under the deal, South Korea will abolish tariffs on 94-point-eight percent of all items, while the Philippines will remove tariffs on 96-point-five percent of all products. 

The two sides agreed to officially sign the deal in the near future after conducting legal reviews and securing approval from their respective parliaments. 

Earlier on Tuesday, Minister Yeo also signed a FTA with Cambodia after a video-linked meeting with Cambodian Commerce Minister Pan Sorasak.