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Opinion | To reclaim Philippines from Beijing’s grasp, US must look beyond the South China Sea
- The Trump administration talks up an old defence treaty and invites Duterte to visit.
- Meanwhile, Manila is awash with Chinese cash
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Why you can trust SCMP
International talk about the Philippines often focuses on the South China Sea and disputes that the country has with China. Speculation then follows about the character of, and sometimes controversial quotations from, President Rodrigo Duterte. Less notice is given to the country’s economy that continues to grow, although not without hiccups, at one of the fastest rates in the region.
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The three issues however interplay and have a significance that extends beyond the archipelago of islands. The recent visit to Manila by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo brings this into focus.
Secretary Pompeo reassured the Philippines about the scope of the Mutual Defence treaty between the two countries, clarifying that any attack on Philippine aircraft or ships in the South China Sea would trigger a response from the United States. Such comments seek to provide reassurance when China is building military outposts in the sea.
In contrast to more ambiguous interpretations given by past US administrations, the statement was unusually clear. Yet so were the responses from his Filipino hosts.
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Pompeo’s counterpart, Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin, preferred the view that, “In vagueness lies the best deterrence”. Philippine Defence Secretary Delfin Lorenzana responded that he was less worried about the lack of US assurance and worried more that the treaty might lead to a war that, “we [the Philippines] do not seek and do not want”.
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