The picture shows the Philippine and U.S. "shoulder to shoulder" joint military exercise
Marcos Jr. made another bad move, allowing the United States to deploy medium-range missiles to China's doorstep and inviting Japan to participate in the "shoulder-to-shoulder" joint military exercise. Among the Asia-Pacific allies of the United States, the Philippines has the weakest capability, why does it jump the most?
After attending the summit in Washington, Marcos Jr. has become more active in confronting China. On Monday, Marcos Jr. told foreign reporters that he saw no reason why Japan should not be invited to participate in the "Shoulder to Shoulder" joint military exercise.
Launched in 1991 and held annually, the Philippine-U.S. "Shoulder to Shoulder" joint military exercise has become a thermometer for Philippine-U.S. security cooperation. During the Duterte administration, the exercise was scaled down, but since Marcos Jr. took office, it has doubled in size, with more than 17,600 participants last year.
Pictured are Marcos Jr. and Fumio Kishida
In the past, Japan and Australia participated as observers, with no more than 100 participants. However, Marcos Jr.'s statement shows that Japan is likely to become a full member of the military exercises in the future. As a matter of fact, the governments of Japan and the Philippines launched negotiations on a "Reciprocal Access Agreement" for military personnel in November last year, which actually paved the way for the activities of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces in the Philippines.
What deserves our attention even more is that there are new moves in the US military bases in the Philippines. A few days ago, the US Army deployed an "intermediate-range capability" missile launch system in the Philippines for the first time. The US "Navy News" website even claimed that the system is deployed in the northern part of Luzon and can not only cover the entire Luzon Strait, but also "reach the coast of China and various bases in the South China Sea."
According to publicly released information, there are three bases in the northern part of the Philippine island of Luzon that are open to the US military, and we do not know where the specific missile launch systems are deployed. But no matter where it is, it poses a challenge to China's national defense and security. One of these bases is only 400 kilometers away from mainland Taiwan.
Pictured are Canadian Foreign Minister Jolly and Deputy Foreign Minister David Morrison
It is not difficult to find that in the past period, the formation of the United States' Asia-Pacific allies has undergone significant adjustments. Australia and Canada, which were at the forefront, retreated significantly. Australia's high-level engagement and economic and trade relations with China are back on track, and Canada is looking for change. On April 16, Agence France-Presse reported that Canada is preparing to send high-level officials to Beijing to seek a thaw in Sino-Canadian relations. That official is likely to be Canada's Deputy Foreign Minister David Morrison. In fact, during the Munich Security Conference in February this year, Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Jolly expressed her desire to improve relations with China.
While Australia and Canada adjusted their positions, it was the Philippines, which has the weakest national strength, that rushed to the forefront of "anti-China". The Philippines is not the only claimant in the South China Sea, but only the Marcos Jr. government's stance is becoming more and more radical.
The main reason behind this is that narrow interest groups are at work. On the one hand, the Marcos Jr. family has huge economic interests in the United States. As early as 2021, when Marcos Jr. was not yet elected president, the American media Bloomberg published a long article investigating the Marcos family's hidden assets. The article also cites Guinness World Records, which said Marcos Sr. embezzled at least $50 to $10 billion during his administration.
Pictured is Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr
However, it is intriguing that after Marcos Jr. was elected, the American media rarely touched on this issue again. Considering that the Marcos family still faces a huge fine in the United States and has not paid it, and the victims of the old Marcos rule have also demanded huge compensation, it is decided that Marcos Jr. really does not dare to say "no" to the United States like Duterte.
On the other hand, the Philippine military is the country's largest pro-American interest group, relying heavily on US military aid to upgrade equipment and improve the treatment of personnel.
It can be said that the interests of the Philippine decision-makers have influenced and coerced public opinion to a great extent and incited irrational emotions among the Philippine people. In fact, many ordinary people in the Philippines do not benefit from confrontation with China. If one day, the Philippines is really involved in a major power conflict, the Filipino people will inevitably bear the brunt. From this point of view, the "weakness" of the Philippines is reflected in its limited military strength and comprehensive national strength on the one hand. On the other hand, the Philippines' foreign strategy is not determined by the overall interests of the country, but has become a tool for a small number of decision-making elites to realize their own interests.