By Robert B. Roque, Jr.
Since his 2016 election win, President Duterte has repeatedly threatened to put an end to the Filipino-American alliance while focusing on cultivating relationships with China or Russia.
And so it has begun. He terminated the military pact known as the 1998 Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA).
The cancellation last January of Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa’s US visa was, apparently, the final straw. It was viewed not just as a personal affront on the President’s drug war champion but also, as Bato put it, a display of America’s “one-sided foreign relations”.
Duterte told the US to reverse the revocation of Bato’s visa, or else. It did not happen. The rest is history.
But US President Donald Trump’s reaction to the VFA’s abrogation was unexpected. He shrugged it off, saying it would “save a lot of money” for the US.
Many perceived Duterte’s move as a step to steer our alliance towards China. Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said it was never about a shift but the removal of alliances with other countries. Meaning, we are on our own.
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The VFA issue is divisive. Some think it guarantees preferential treatment for US service members who have been accused of crimes.
Its defenders believe terminating the agreement will compromise any Southeast Asian nation’s ability to defend itself, undermine the US goal of containing China’s ambitions, and fuel the latter’s aggressive stance in the South China Sea.
China has long been bullying and abusing Filipino fishers in the West Philippine Sea. Still, our officials hardly take notice of activities that place the Asian giant in a bad light.
Duterte’s decision, perceived as an unpopular move, has angered several Filipinos, many of whom have relatives in the States and currently serve in the US Armed Forces.
It is not a far-fetched idea that some sectors in the military are also peeved since many Filipino soldiers also have strong ties with the US military. Communist propaganda or not, Leftist leader Joma Sison is already spreading rumors about coup talks among pro-US officers.
True, there are pros and cons to the issue of VFA abrogation. When the Duterte Administration ends, we will know whether or not Digong’s decision benefited the Philippines.
If the answer is in the affirmative, then he will be celebrated as a great president. If not, we can pray that we can undo the damage he did to our country.
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Through the VFA, members of the American military shared intelligence and technical know-how to their Filipino counterparts. They also provided humanitarian assistance, both logistically and physically, during natural disasters.
What will happen now to our disaster response capabilities without US assistance?
Borrowing Panelo’s words, “we’re on our own.”
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