The Philippines should prioritize its people over the U.S.

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The Philippine government is considering building a permanent civilian structure such as a lighthouse or a marine science research center on Ren'ai Jiao, the Philippine Armed Forces spokesperson Colonel Medel Aguilar said recently in an interview with local media.

The comments that came after a series of maritime run-ins will only raise the risks of hot conflicts in the South China Sea. This extremely dangerous behavior has not only infringed on China's sovereignty rights but is also irresponsible toward people in the Philippines.

For decades, Filipinos have benefited from cooperation in oil, gas production, and fisheries. Stability on Ren'ai Jiao – a resource-rich waterway and a central shipping channel – is vital for regional prosperity. It is against this backdrop that China has been pursuing joint development regarding the South China Sea, and has shown extraordinary restraint and patience concerning Ren'ai Jiao.

However, the Philippine government, in recent months, has broken the trajectory. Philippine vessels have repeatedly intruded into China's waters to send construction materials to the illegally grounded warship on the reef, invited anti-Beijing media outlets to smear China, and conducted several joint patrols with the United States. Despite its previous pledge to tow its illegally grounded vessel away, Manila is instead attempting to reinforce the ship on a large scale to permanently occupy Ren'ai Jiao.

Manila's provocations are part of its orchestrated strategy to appeal for support from the United States. Granting the Pentagon more military bases and challenging China's sovereignty rights, the Philippine government is manipulating every means possible to satisfy the White House, naively believing the U.S. can "protect" it in the face of hot conflicts.

However, American hegemony, not Philippine security, is what Washington only cares about. It is an old tactic of Washington to use Manila as a pawn in its strategic competition against China. Meanwhile, rising tensions in the South China Sea mean colossal benefits for American arms merchants. After all, selling wars has been one of the key reasons behind U.S. prosperity.

"The United States is using the Philippines as a pawn and a proxy," said Anna Malindog-Uy, vice president of the Manila-based think tank Asian Century Philippines Strategic Studies Institute.

From the riots in China's Hong Kong to wars in the Middle East and tensions in the South China Sea, the U.S., in the guise of "human rights" and "protection" for local people, is turning every corner of the world into a dangerous flashpoint – all in an attempt to secure its dominance over the globe.

While the U.S. is the biggest beneficiary of the havoc caused by conflicts and wars, local people are the biggest victims. Given the Philippines' geographical proximity to China, heightened tensions between Beijing and Manila could only increase the two countries' security expenditure. In the end, it will be local people who will pay the price. After all, the significance of regional peace and safe waterways can never be underestimated in securing local people's access to stable oil, gas, and fishery resources.

"Filipinos like us, we don't want to have a problem with China. China is like a close neighbor," Malindog-Uy said in an interview with CGTN. 

Lucio Blanco Pitlo, a research fellow at the Philippine think tank Asia-Pacific Pathways to Progress Foundation, also hoped that conflicts "would be prevented going forward, and that trade, especially in relation to agriculture, manufacturing, and the inflow of Chinese investments and tourists in the Philippines, won't be affected negatively by the prominence of these disputes."

Peace and development are valuable global public goods. In the face of rising tensions, local people are rooting for win-win cooperation and a path of peaceful development. Perhaps the Philippines government should consider the needs of its people first before playing up to the United States.

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