The Philippines needs to resist moves by the United States to militarize the region, noting that it doesn’t only hurt peace and stability but also undermines the Southeast Asian country’s sovereignty, a forum heard on Thursday.
The US is making the disputes over the South China Sea as excuses for it to use the Philippines as a launchpad for its military operations in the Asia-Pacific region, according to analysts and activist leaders who participated in a forum on the Philippines-US relations.
The hybrid forum in Manila was held as Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr paid a four-day visit to the US.
Roland Simbulan, vice-chairperson of the Center for People’s Empowerment in Governance, a Manila-based think tank, has warned against the Philippines-US military agreements, including the recent decision to give the US access to four new military facilities under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, or EDCA.These sites, he said, have made the Philippines a “sitting duck” for a US-instigated conflict in the region.
“The Philippines is again in the direct line of fire in the US war machine,” Simbulan said, noting this has also been the case when the US military had bases in the northern Philippine provinces of Pampanga and Zambales.
The bases were shut after the Philippine Senate voted against the Philippines-US Bases Treaty in 1991.
Simbulan said the US has a history of aggression and intervention, and warned that the EDCA could be used to contain China and intervene in its Taiwan island. He said that under such an agreement, the Philippine foreign policy has been “militarized”.
He said the Philippines needs to focus on its priority — which is economic development. But in order to make that possible, it’s necessary to have peace in the region. He said conflicts will only weaken the Philippine economy.
Francisca Castro, deputy minority leader at the Philippine House of Representatives, said instead of de-escalating tensions, the expanded US-Philippines military agreement is only heightening the rivalry between China and the US.She said with the South China Sea as a potential flashpoint, it’s the ordinary Filipino citizens and the country’s resources that will be caught in the middle of any potential conflict.
Castro said that instead of relying on the US military, the Philippines can use more diplomatic means to resolve disputes with China over the South China Sea.
Source : China Daily
