Francesca Ria R.

Colima
AB Foreign Service - FS301
International Political Economy
Jumel G. Estrañero
March 5, 2018

The Sudden Shift in the US-RP-PRC Relations: Who’s in and who’s out

Drastic changes occurred in the political economic spheres of the United

States of America and the Republic of the Philippines after people from both
states elected two Machiavellian-like rulers--President Donald Trump and
President Rodrigo Duterte, respectively. With the People’s Republic of China’s
President Xi Jinping’s authority and influence on the rise, these three had been
entangled from either a discord or concord with one another which tests and
risks ties among them. Hence the severity of the relations of either of the two
or of all the three states tends to be transpiring.

The Philippines had been a great ally of the United States ever since. In
fact, the country had given U.S. privileges which are more than necessary
because of what we Filipinos deemed as an ‘utang na loob’ (indebtedness) to
these Americans. Yet Pres. Duterte deviates from the usual practices of his
predecessors, that is to say, expressing his vehement opposition against the
U.S. and to cut ties with it in which he actually did in front of the Beijing
audience.

As the Philippines aligned itself now with China, it then prompted to what
other considered as “prospering collaboration”. China had been supporting us
financially in everything to when the Philippines battled out against drugs and
terrorists in Marawi City, and to the city’s rehabilitation as well.

Now, China and Philippines do come along really well; however, thinking
about the contention that happened between the two, which refers to the
maritime dispute, make their ‘blooming’ relationship a bit off and alarming.
Despite the result of the ruling, having the Philippines as the rightful claimant,
Manila appeared to be paying little attention to it recently and have been
participating eagerly with its economic relations with China.
 On the other hand, the US-PRC relations seemed to be deteriorating as
Pres. Trump implements his “America First” policy which features
protectionism, and China is one of which that would certainly be affected. With
that being said, China does express a possibility of retaliation if tariffs do start
to bite.

The wavering relations of US-RP-PRC, however, would not only be

confined to them, but it would also extend to the countries who have close
relations with them. Specifically in the case of US-PRC, the tariffs that will be
imposed to the Beijing market, due to U.S. protectionism, would not only
damage that of China but also of other countries who imports components to
Beijing then to be exported by Beijing after manufacturing.

Though tensions and conflicts rise among these said countries, all seemed
to be benefiting from each other. The U.S. benefits from the Philippines in
terms of trade, military and politics. Philippines, with the presence of U.S.’
military bases all throughout the country, grants people security. China, with its
‘flourishing partnership’ with the Philippines got a chance of “co-ownership”1
through joint exploration in the South China Sea. Philippines gains financial
assistance from China. US-PRC trade then, as I personally believe, is actually
a win-win situation since both would profit to each other’s imports and exports.

Alarmingly, as the severity of ties transpires among US-RP-PRC, the

Philippines would likely to be in great danger compared to the two. Both U.S.
and China are politically influential and economically dominant in the world
stage; thus would not lead to the downfall of either countries. The Philippines,
on the other hand, would not likely survived its fall if Washington or Beijing cut
ties with the Philippines. There would also be a collapse in the political
economy of the country since it is not as stable as the other aforesaid
countries.

Should the Philippines continues to join forces with China, Beijing might
actually gain full access to the islands in the South China Sea. Since the
tribunal ruling is permanent, the Philippines would may actually sustain “our
islands” but it is possible as well to have a ‘Chinese sway’ in political activity of
the Philippines. Also, should the decline of the US-PRC relations persist, I and
even others might have possibly concluded that the Asia-Pacific region could
actually turn into a theatre of war between U.S. and China. These would then
cause destruction to all nations within the region.
 Given these aforementioned statements, I hope that the Philippines would
still recognize its own independence and sovereignty despite of the alliances.
We, indeed, need other foreign countries to be able to gain security and wealth,
but pursuing the nation’s own interest without regards to foreign interests must
be prioritized first. The country must seek an attainable way in order to grow
stronger. Time will come where the Philippines might need to stand on their
own or must come against conflicts with other nations on our own. We cannot
depend on our allies ‘til the very end because of the sole reason that we don’t
know who our real allies are. Thus, the President, specifically, should not give
its full trust to his/her foreign counterparts. But this doesn’t permanently imply
that the Philippines needs to be independent from others. No country would
prosper without engaging itself with other states.Our current and/or future
leader(s) needs not to be too soft to other nation’s leaders, but he does not
need to be too hard and authoritative to them as well. We must not involved
ourselves in the conflict of others. It is not necessary to take sides. This would
probably keep the country away from perilous crisis that would cause into our
own ruination.

Salaver, Leah. “Joint exploration with China is co-ownership, says Duterte.” Inquirer.net, March 1, 2018. Accessed
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