 |
| The US vs China-Russia 21st Century Cold War being played out in the South China Sea |
The Americans appear to be losing more and more Asian allies in the US vs China-Russia 21st Century Cold War that is being played out in the strive for geo-political economic dominance in the South China Sea (SCS).
The US’ oldest “loyal” ally, the Philippines has been quoted as saying “America has failed us”.
And recently, 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) Malaysia and Singapore were also locked in disputes. (Read these for context: http://victorlim2016.blogspot.my/2016/10/you-dont-believe-us-is-prepared-to-go.html and http://victorlim2016.blogspot.my/2016/08/malaysia-unusually-meek-over-spratly.html)
As for Singapore, read this: http://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/start-of-chinas-coercive-diplomacy-towards-singapore
So, the US are now left with Japan, South Korea, Vietnam and Taiwan in the Cold War being played out in the SCS?
PUBLISHED : Thursday, 06 October, 2016, 5:33pm
UPDATED : Thursday, 06 October, 2016, 10:15pm
The Philippines’s top diplomat said President Rodrigo Duterte is seeking an independent foreign policy for the country because “America has failed us” in the decades since it gained independence from its former colonial master.
“The United States held on to invisible chains that reined us in towards dependency and submission as little brown brothers not capable of true independence and freedom,” Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay said in a statement distributed on Thursday by the Department of Foreign Affairs. “Breaking away from the shackling dependency of the Philippines to effectively address both internal and external security threats has become imperative in putting an end to our nation’s subservience to United States’ interests.”
“We will never allow China or any other nation to bully us or deal with Philippine interests under another carrot and stick policy” - FOREIGN SECRETARY PERFECTO YASAY
The US has remained the Philippines closest ally since it gained independence in 1946 and the two countries have several defence treaties. However in his three months since taking office, Duterte has frequently called into question the future of the alliance, including a recent comment that joint maritime drills that kicked off this week will be the last. He has indicated he is open to closer relations with China and willing to hold direct talks with Beijing about territorial disputes in the South China Sea.
US displeased, irritated at Duterte’s rant against Obama
Yasay said the Philippines would learn from its past mistakes in dealing with the US as it fosters broader relationships with countries like China.
“We will never allow China or any other nation to bully us or deal with Philippine interests under another carrot and stick policy,“ he said.
Duterte said on Tuesday that the Philippines doesn’t benefit from the joint drills with the U.S. and reiterated threats to sever ties. In the same speech, the Philippine leader said: “Obama you can go to hell.”
Duterte has frequently bristled at American criticism of his war on drugs in which more than 3,000 people have been killed. In a speech last month, Duterte said the Philippines would pursue an independent foreign policy and insist “on the time-honoured principles of sovereignty, sovereign equality, non-interference and the commitment to a peaceful settlement of disputes”.
Is Philippine President Duterte playing the United States and China?
Duterte’s comments often seem to catch members of his own administration off guard. Philippine Defence Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said on Wednesday that Duterte may not have sufficient information on the nation’s military agreements with the US, a situation that the Department of Defence will try to remedy.
“I said our beloved President is misinformed because it would seem that the information that he receives are incomplete,” Lorenzana said in a mobile-phone message forwarded by his department’s public affairs group. The Philippines, which is conducting drills with US troops until October 12, benefits from the training, tactical exercises and civic projects, Lorenzana said.
Duterte’s spokesman Ernesto Abella said on Wednesday that people should use their “creative imagination and not be too literal” in interpreting the president’s statements.s
This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as:
‘America has failed us’, minister says in latest broadside… - South China Morning Post"
"
 |
| Filipinos could soon be able to travel to China visa-free. Pic: zhang dayong/Unsplash |
by Travel Wire Staff | 7th October 2016 | @travelwireasia
IN a bid to repair strained relations with China, Philippines’ president Rodrigo Duterte is ready to offer visa-free travel to Chinse citizens. He disclosed this ahead of his three-day state visit to China on October 18.
A visa waiver entitles visitors to enter the Philippines and stay in the country from 14 days to a maximum of 150 days. Such a visa waiver, however, must be reciprocal, and would necessitate Beijing to extend the same visa-free privilege to Filipino travelers entering China.
The president pointed out that the visa waiver would enable the Philippines to capture a huge chunk of the Chinese tourist market, a segment of the industry that’s growing rapidly owing to a growing Chinese middle class.
According to data from the website of China National Tourism Administration, the Philippines ranked 11th in top source travel markets of China, with more than a million arrivals, up 3.7 percent from 2014.
SEE ALSO: Chinese outbound travelers are unstoppable, no sign of slowing down
However, the Philippines leader – notorious for his brutal drug crackdown – was also concerned with the number of Chinese drug lords arrested in the Philippines, and other China-based criminals who may take advantage of such visa-free privileges.
The Philippine government currently offers visa-free privileges to tourists from nearly 50 countries including member-states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and island states around the world.
It was also recently announced that China is offering visa-free entry for selected Filipino passport holders traveling to Taiwan.
Applicants who have been issued entry visas to any one of the following countries – Australia, Canada, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, United States or any of the Schengen countries – can qualify for the visa exemption.
Meanwhile, Japan will relax visa rules for Chinese visitors to boost repeat arrivals. Multi-entry visas for short-term stays with business purposes, or by cultural figures and intellectuals will go up to 10 years, a bump up from the current five-year allowance."
No comments:
Post a Comment