More U.S. bases in the Philippines: More provocations Against China

 

By David Starr

 

In an act of provocative intimidation, the United States, as an empire, has set up an agreement with the Philippines government to establish yet more military bases in the Philippines. And the target is the People’s Republic of China. This has to be called for what it is: utter insanity.

 

There are plans to set up four more bases in the archipelago, in an effort to prepare for a potential military confrontation with China; that is, if China happens to “invade” Taiwan. It was established years ago by the U.S. and China that Taiwan is part of the latter nation. However, U.S. leaders, as usual in these situations in dealing with a socialist country, broke that agreement. Now, according to Sui-Lee Wee of the New York Times, Washington is trying to “reaffirm its influence in the region amid a broader effort to counter Chinese aggression.” 

 

Chinese “aggression.” It should be clear that it’s the U.S. that is trying to impose itself in the region, and military means are not out of the question. The U.S. has bases in Japan, South Korea, Guam and now more in the Philippines, in an attempt to encircle China. Who is really being the aggressor here? Apparently, there are no Chinese military bases in Mexico or Canada to surround the U.S. And the U.S. has had a long-standing, imperial foreign policy that has committed aggression many times, especially in the “Third World.”

 

Despite the degree of objectivity, leave it to the New York Times and other media outlets to give U.S. imperialism the benefit of the doubt. In Wee’s article, the spokeswoman for China’s foreign ministry was quoted. But the overall tone of the piece peddled the worn-out cliché of China being the “bad guy.” 

 

There have been disputes between China and other neighboring nations, including the Philippines, involving the matter of territory in the region; namely, the South China Sea. But diplomacy should be the way to go. The nations involved in the region, including China, must talk in a civil manner to resolve the dispute. But the main problem is U.S. interference and provocations which threaten the chance of diplomatic measures. 

 

The Philippines and the United States have a sordid history where the latter has, like in other situations, moved into different nations and basically turned them into market satellites. So, it was with the Philippines. In the 1890s, the Philippines was seeking independence from Spanish colonialism. The U.S. promised to give aid to the cause, resulting in the Spanish-American War. After Spain was defeated, the Filipino insurgents thought they achieved independence, establishing what was called the First Republic. When they tried to exercise this goal, U.S. troops kept them from entering the capitol city of Manila. 

 

The U.S. flag was hoisted up in the city, meaning the U.S. would not allow independence. This betrayal shocked and angered the insurgents, along with many other Filipinos. As a result, the Philippines declared war on the United States, culminating in the Philippine-American War. It was a drawn-out, bloody affair, resulting in hundreds of thousands Filipino deaths and over 4,000 U.S. military personnel dead. There was also the use of torture and forced relocation by U.S. military personnel. The general barbarity of the U.S. was typified by the words of Brigadier-General Jacob Smith when he ordered his troops to do the following: “I want no prisoners. I wish you to kill and burn. The more you kill and burn, the better you will please me.” Smith added that he wanted all persons 10-years-old and up to be killed. 

 

So, this was the start of the Filipino-American relationship. And over the years, it was and has been consistently unequal, with the U.S. being a “big brother’ to the Filipinos.

 

The unequal relationship continues, and the installment of more bases in the Philippines now sharpens it. In a fact sheet, Massachusetts Peace Action (MPA) condemned the idea of more bases, calling it “a bad idea.” The idea was based on the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement signed in 2014. The new bases would be set up in the northern Philippines, near China and Taiwan. 

 

MPA cited consequences of expanding the U.S. military presence in Asia:

 

• It is a wasteful and dangerous idea.

• It would increase military tensions between the U.S. and China.

• Military tensions risk the scenario of a military clash between the U.S. and China. 

• That would increase the potential for a nuclear war.

• U.S. military infrastructure in the Philippines wastes funds that could be used for domestic needs.

• The fact that having the U.S. military presence in the archipelago since the late 1800s is a very sensitive issue for many Filipinos.

 

In making all this militarism official, the U.S. Secretary of Defense, and former Raytheon board member, Lloyd Austin visited the Philippines on February 1 to announce the increase in bases. He happened to visit near the date of 124th anniversary of the Philippine-American War (February 4,1899). Austin met with Ferdinand Marcos Jr., son of the U.S.-backed tyrant who ruled from the 1960s to 1986. Why Filipinos voted for Marcos Jr. is baffling. (Unless electoral fraud was committed.) The Marcos family have been elitists and have welcomed U.S. interference in the Philippines.

 

Sounding too-good-to-be-true and imperialistic, Austin said, “American commitment to the defense of the Philippines is ironclad. Our alliance makes both of our democracies [LOL] more secure and helps uphold a free and open Indo-Pacific.”  What security and freedom when you’re hostile and making provocations? Austin shows that Democrats are no better than Republicans when it comes to foreign policy.

 

China did have a response. Mao Ning, a spokesperson for China’s foreign ministry, had this to say: “This is an act that escalates tensions in the region and endangers regional peace and stability. Regional countries should remain vigilant about this and avoid being used by the U.S.” Given the overall circumstances, and the U.S.’s ideological objectives, she has a point.

 

But has China been aggressive towards its neighbors? This could be, but it is a tense situation involving several nations. Besides, the media and government have a habit of exaggerating, omitting facts, and outrightly lying. But the situation is a gray area.

 

Adding U.S. military bases in the Philippines can only fuel more militarization, death and suffering. The U.S.’s imperial foreign policy has to be called for what it is: utter insanity, with peace and diplomacy not being the priorities.