As predicted several times, and as early as 2012, Asian nations will begin to abandon the United States which is seen as an increasingly unreliable partner, and join the communist Chinese protectorate umbrella. If you’re a nation in Asia today it’s more costly to go to war against China and risk annihilation without knowing if America really does have your back, so you’re better off joining them. The want of deeper ties also with Russia, even only on the economic level, is a long-term strategic bonus for the Philippines.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte arrives at the military’s Camp Tecson to talk to soldiers in San Miguel, Bulacan in northern Philippines September 15, 2016. REUTERS/Erik De Castro
MANILA (Reuters) – Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said on Monday he would visit Russia and China this year to chart an independent foreign policy and “open alliances” with two powers with historic rivalries with the United States.
Duterte said the Philippines was at the “point of no return” in relations with former colonial ruler the United States, so he wanted to strengthen ties with others, and picked two global powers that have been sparring with Washington on the international political stage.
Last week, he last declared he would visit China, with which ties remain frosty over a South China Sea arbitration ruling won by the Philippines in July. He said Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev was expecting him in Moscow.
…
“I am ready to not really break (U.S.) ties but we will open alliances with China and… Medvedev,” Duterte told reporters, adding he would open up the “other side of the ideological barrier”.
He welcomed investment and shrugged off rating agency Standard and Poor’s concerns last week about the Philippine economy on his watch.
“Never mind about the ratings,” he said. “I will open up the Philippines for them to do business, alliances of trade and commerce.”
…
His vitriol against the United States has become a near-daily occurrence, sparking both amusement and concern. On Monday he accused Washington of “hypocrisy” and “lording it over us”.
His latest swipe included ruling out participation in any maritime conflict initiated by the United States, despite a 1951 treaty which Duterte said required Manila to back Washington.
“I am about to cross the Rubicon between me and the U.S.,” he said,” without elaborating. “It’s the point of no return.“
Full article: Philippines’ Duterte wants to ‘open alliances’ with Russia, China (Yahoo!)
Global Geopolitics 