In pivot to China, beware the tender trap and don't junk old friends - solons to Duterte

From InterAksyon (Oct 18): In pivot to China, beware the tender trap and don't junk old friends - solons to Duterte

As President Rodrigo Duterte turns to China for military and economic partnership, independent lawmakers said Tuesday the Philippines should not ditch its “reliable, traditional allies” such as the United States.

They also warned against being caught in the trap of China’s benevolence, stressing that the country has an ongoing territorial dispute with its giant neighbor in the South China Sea.
A recent survey by the Social Weather Stations (SWS) showed that Filipinos trust the United States most, and China the least.

“That survey would show the popular consensus of the caution being sent as an advisory to the President that there is no opposition to making friends and great partners, but at the same time, we should not jettison our reliable traditional economic and security allies,” Albay Representative Edcel Lagman said in a news conference.

He added that the President should heed the sentiment of the Filipinos, adding that “the complexion of diplomacy is polygamy.”

Akbayan partylist Rep. Tom Villarin said that while the President should be reminded that the country is in a dispute with China over latter's refusal to recognize a UN arbitral tribunal's ruling on maritime entitlements in the South China Sea.

“One of the best ways to tell this to the President is to tell the story of the spider enticing the fly, spinning his silky web, until the fly was caught in the trap.  We don’t want to be caught in the trap,” he said.

“We all know how China has behaved aggressively in the West Philippine Sea, and for the months to come, such behavior will not change,” Villarin added.

Capiz Rep. Emmanuel Billiones said he hopes Duterte’s talks in China will bring positive results.

“I hope the President will assert our sovereignty and our interests,” he said.

Lagman said the President should use as leverage in dealing with China the ruling of the Permanent Court of Arbitration that issued a favorable position for the Philippines.

“Whether or not President Duterte pulls out of his travel bag a copy of the arbitral decision sustaining the Philippines’ sovereignty over the disputed islands in the West Philippine Sea, China must be constantly reminded of the Philippines’ victory,” he said.

“As Spanish diplomat Salvador De Madariaga has said, the gun that will shoot is more eloquent than the gun which has shot,” he added.

Lagman continued, “It is to the Philippines’ national interest for China to be made always aware that the arbitral decision is the President’s gun that will shoot to set the tone of the bilateral talks.”

http://interaksyon.com/article/133457/in-pivot-to-china-beware-the-tender-trap-and-dont-junk-old-friends---solons-to-duterte