In US lockstep, Philippines ‘de-risking’ from China

The Philippines and China have capped their tensions in the South China Sea after a series of incidents brought the two rival claimants dangerously close to armed conflict. But the fragile sea truce masks a more fundamental shift in Philippine-China relations. The Ferdinand Marcos Jr administration is quietly yet proactively “de-risking” relations with China in line with US-led decoupling and in apparent anticipation of a future conflict with the Asian superpower.

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