The Philippines shouldn’t have to choose between China and the United States.
It is a sovereign nation, after all. It has every right to forge its own foreign policy.
And please, stop pointing out how close we are with the latter. It’s only because Uncle Sam hijacked our revolution and then turned it into a half century of enculturation, indoctrination and brainwashing even going to the extent of referring to Filipinos as “little brown brothers” during the colonial period. It’s not by chance that majority of Filipinos continue to look up to Washington.
I for one don’t have any problems with them. Believe it or not, there was a period in my life I thought I was one of them. A brown but not so little brother.
I went to an American university, joined an American fraternity and continue to be in touch with my friends there.
But much has changed since the early ‘90s.
When all former Soviet republics gained full independence in 1991, it seemed the US and the West had won the Cold War. That liberal democracy had triumphed over authoritarianism. And for a while there, that seemed to be the case.
But US unilateralism could not stay unchallenged for long.
China, which had been humiliated by the West in the 19th century and relegated to a developing country status, had finally gotten its act together.
Today, China has the second largest economy in the world next to the US. It is forecast to surpass the American economy by 2035, but there are some who are saying it will be sooner.
With the world’s largest army and navy, it’s a force to be reckoned with. And it’s not taking any BS from anyone, including the US.
Unfortunately for the Philippines, there is the matter of Chinese encroachment on a portion of the South China Sea called the West Philippine Sea, which refers to the waters included in the country’s exclusive economic zone.
That might explain why the Marcos Jr. administration has been cozying up to the US after former President Rodrigo Duterte played footsie with Beijing.
But do you really think China will invade the archipelago?
According to the Department of Trade and Industry statistics, China was the Philippines’ largest trading partner and largest source of imports in 2021, as well as the country’s second-largest export market.
So Malacañang cannot have a direct confrontation with Beijing, economically and militarily, but it can’t just ignore the incursions without appearing to have ceded sovereignty to China.
The US is more than willing to stem the tide of global sinofication and remain relevant in this region. What better way then than to rekindle ties with its former colony.
To put it simply, the Philippines has no choice but to maintain relations with both countries.
It just has to make sure it serves its and its people’s interests and not those of China or the US.