And with this “independent” foreign policy, the President hopes that the Philippines would be “friends” to everyone.
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Duterte said he had directed Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana to join technical staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) in visits to Russian Federation and China to “see what is best”.
“It serves as notice that really the reason why there is trouble here is because of that threat”, he said.
[Duterte] announced he is ending joint naval patrols with the U.S. in the South China Sea, and also suggested historical reliance on the USA for military gear was waning, saying the Philippines would soon send officials to China and Russian Federation in efforts to shop around for military equipment.
On the other hand, a joint patrol includes the operational area and goes beyond the 12 nautical mile territorial area such as the exclusive economic zone and worldwide waters, he said.
Jon Grevatt, a defense industry analyst at IHS Jane’s in Bangkok, told Bloomberg the USA would likely move diplomatically to prevent a deal between the Philippines and China, but Duterte has stated he wants to do business where it is “cheap” and “there are no strings attached”.
Beijing claims sovereignty over around 90 percent of the sea, an area marked by a so-called “nine-dash line” on Chinese official maps, while the Philippines and other Asian nations have their own claims.
In a speech in Malacañang on Monday, September 12, Duterte said the US Special Forces have to leave Mindanao.
The US State Department on Tuesday also said it has yet to receive a formal communication from the Philippine government about Duterte’s latest pronouncement which was interpreted as part of his commitment to pursue an independent foreign policy for the Philippines.
He warned that USA troops would be at risk if they did not leave the country.
“You have to keep in mind that it’s these U.S. troops who help the military go after the Abu Sayyaf”, Cuisia said. Because they invaded this country and made us their subjugated people …
He said Duterte’s statement was simply an “injunction” or a “warning” about the dangers facing American troops amid the lingering resentment among Filipinos over their past “unrepented” wrongs.
“As far as I know, we have not yet conducted any joint maritime patrols with the US”, Acedillo said.
The ties with Philippines are at a turning point, China said, adding that it expects Manila to handle the conflicts appropriately.
“I don’t need jets, F-16 – that’s of no use to us”, he said.
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In Washington, the Pentagon and State Department said they had not been officially contacted by Manila about pulling out the remaining advisers, whom Foreign Secretary Perfecto R. Yasay, Jr., said now numbered about 100. A limited U.S. troop contingent was deployed to the country in 2002 to train, advise and provide intelligence and weapons to Filipino troops battling Al-Qaeda-linked militant group in the southern Philippines.
