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© Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.Philippine president offers a deal to China: Stop sea aggression and I'll return missiles to US
By JIM GOMEZ MANILA, Philippines©2025 GPlusMedia Inc.
29 Comments
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TaiwanIsNotChina
A sound proposal but China is fully belligerent under Xi, at least if you believe he controls his armed forces.
JJE
Beijing views Bongbong as a proxy.
TaiwanIsNotChina
Then they need such a nonsense position corrected: the Philippines has 100% UN recognition.
Fos
Once again there is not the slightest amount of credibility of what the government of Philippines is saying.
Just need to check who Bongbong father is (Ferdinando Marcos, a dictator with a dubious past to say the least, shielded conveniently by the United States), and what kind of investment the US administration is doing in the country: billions and billions of dollars of infrastructure for warmongering (go figure) to please, guess who, the big industrial military complex:
https://apnews.com/article/us-philippines-china-military-typhon-midrange-missile-system-69242b99335eb55032894fbc83d75135
deanzaZZR
So this boils down to Jr. President Marcos bargaining with missiles his country does not have the ability to build on its own. The Philippines didn't pay for the missiles. These missiles could be recalled by Trump tomorrow. What amazing state craft, Bong Bong!
TaiwanIsNotChina
No amount of gaslighting can disguise the video, damaged ships, and injured coast guardsmen. China shouldn't even be in these areas.
TaiwanIsNotChina
But Marcos is capable of ordering them removed, rendering your argument quite pointless.
Fos
As much as the the US administration is trying to flare up tensions in the continent, part of their warmongering strategy against China, those images shoot by Filipinos fishermen have no credibility, Not trustworthy like previous attempts which we already mentioned
isabelle
This is actually an overly-generous offer from Marcos. He is saying to China, "Just follow international law and I'll reduce our defenses, even though you won't have to reduce yours."
He's not asking for anything beyond what China should already be doing.
The problem is, of course, that China is a rogue state that doesn't respect international law, so the chances of it complying with its obligations are zero.
JJE
He is trying to pretend his father didn't order the invasion and occupation of a Taiwan province SCS island 1971, annexing it in 1978.
He is also trying to pretend that island is covered by the staged UNCLOS claim, which it isn't.
His trying to pretend he is some position to make/honour any deal regarding the weapons of his master, which he isn't.
He is trying to pretend someone out there takes him seriously, which no one serious does.
deanzaZZR
I simply knew dear Isabella would show up. I wonder why? Bong Bong Junior has nothing to offer as a bargaining chip because the Philippines does not own the missiles. The Philippines does not control the satellites system needed to guide the missiles. Heck, the Philippines does not even have the proverbial thumb on the launch button. Same as it ever was.
Fos
Let us also remind the readers here that the U.S. controls about 800 military bases in more than 90 countries worldwide, as opposed to 3 or 4 of China globally. And yet the US military-industrial complex narrative wants us to believe it’s China and Russia that seek world domination and are the biggest threat to world peace, not the United States.
As a fact the US is trying to advance its "Indo-Pacific" strategy to contain China, fanning the flames in the Korean Peninsula, Taiwan Straits and South China Sea.
Filipinos fisherman stories are party of the manipulative narrative of the US State department
isabelle
Doesn't change the fact that China is, as ever, violating international law.
And the Philippines will likely own the missiles in the next couple of years anyway.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/12/23/philippines-angers-china-with-plans-to-buy-us-typhon-missile-system
He is trying to pretend nothing.
He is asking China to respect international law.
TaiwanIsNotChina
I'm glad you have such a high opinion of Filipino AI and CG.
Let us also remind the readers here that this is pure gaslight as the conflict is between Peking and Manila.
TaiwanIsNotChina
I'm impressed you managed to get a skirt comment in even this nonsense.
That's okay, the water 1 foot off shore is covered.
He is in a position to have the weapons removed.
He's taken more seriously than a madman who violated four international agreements for his war of aggression.
TaiwanIsNotChina
Are you under the impression that he cannot order them off of Filipino territory?
Fos
Reality check: United States of America military spending in 2023 was over $910 billions, 3 times as much as China, based on the statistics from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.
Given the US has surrounded China with dozens of hostile military bases, no-one should be surprised that Beijing has responded to a growing sovereign threat.
That America holding war games in those waters halfway around the world from it is miraculously not threatening, but China holding regular patrols practically in sight of Chinese territory is seems rather an illogical proposition.
The only military risk that we face from China is if we continue as a proxy for the US in its endless wars
TaiwanIsNotChina
And yet the topic of the article is not the US. Perhaps you need more bolding to make this relevant.
Fos
Assertions about Philippines skirmishes are completely fabricated, and even if 1% were true do not justify the anti-Beijing hysteria of the US administration.
Asia welcomes China because China is part of Asia, that would be the starting point of any conversation.
JJE
Are you under the impression he doesn't take his marching orders from above?
TaiwanIsNotChina
Video, damaged ships, and injured coastguardsmen are not fabrications. China shouldn't even be in these waters.
Asia fears China and that would be the starting point of any conversation.
TaiwanIsNotChina
100% UN recognized Philippines is in control over its own territory.
JJE
Let's be honest with ourselves - everyone knows it was and still is a colony.
TaiwanIsNotChina
Let's be honest with ourselves: at this point russia is basically a colony. Extractive activities only are permitted.
GuruMick
Fos...agree that Asia recognises China because China is Asian.
This identification, as "Asian ", resonates with Asian people.
USA dominance not so much.
Tide is turning, American interests are on the outgoing tide.
TaiwanIsNotChina
Reserve currency as strong as it has been for decades and China is greying every day. Some unfortunate few may have to send tribute to emperor Xi but not everybody.
isabelle
You love that copy-paste, don't you? Then, I'll return the favor yet again:
...
What utterly ridiculous logic.
Does Asia welcome North Korea because it is in Asia? Did China welcome Imperial Japan because it was in Asia? Laughable.
GuruMick
Copy paste good....anti China bad....clear now ?
theFu
Xi is doing better at destroying China than anyone outside the country.