Filipinos began to reflect on why they were isolated by 9 countries. Marcos made seven mistakes, and ASEAN decisively "drew a line" with the Philippines.
Recently, the Philippine "Manila Times" published an article that began to reflect on "Why does ASEAN not support the Philippines' actions against China?" The article also cites seven reasons for the lack of sympathy for the Philippines in neighboring countries.
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr
Let's take a look at the first reason, that is, most ASEAN countries have maintained close economic and trade ties with China, and have maintained close cooperation in finance, investment and other fields, so they do not want to "offend" China.
It is not wrong to say that China and ASEAN have been each other's largest trading partners for many years, and the sum of the total economic output has exceeded one-fifth of the world's, and many goods in Southeast Asia have been sold to the Chinese market.
Second, the reason why ASEAN is silent on the issue between China and the Philippines is also related to the United States. Most ASEAN countries are reluctant to take sides between major powers, and if they support the Philippines, they will be seen as siding with the United States.
The article pointed out that since Marcos took office, the Philippines has opened four military bases to the US military and allowed United States to deploy the intermediate-range missile system to the Philippine mainland, which has made the Philippines a follower of the United States through and through.
Against this backdrop, how can ASEAN support the Philippines, which has abandoned the principle of neutrality, while maintaining neutrality?
10 ASEAN countries
Third, ASEAN's solidarity with the Philippines could be a justification for United States media propaganda and bloc building.
For a long time, the United States and the Philippines have tried to portray China as a "challenger" to create a pretext for their own arms build-up against China.
Fourth, even if some ASEAN member states may participate in joint patrols between the United States and the Philippines, they will try to avoid actions that may cause friction and will not fully cooperate with the Philippines.
Fifth, as far as ASEAN is concerned, the intensification of the Sino-US game has further escalated the regional situation, and it is hoped that both sides can exercise restraint, especially the US should stop its military expansion in the Asia-Pacific region to avoid undermining regional peace and stability.
Sixth, ASEAN believes that Marcos has made the Philippines a weapon for United States intervention in the South China Sea and even in the Taiwan Strait, thus exacerbating the differences between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea.
U.S.-Philippines joint military exercises
The implication is that the current situation of the Philippines is entirely caused by the Marcos administration, and other ASEAN member states have no reason or willingness to "sympathize" with the Philippines.
Seventh, ASEAN advocates "building an Asian consensus" and quiet problem solving, rather than the "United States-style" open quarrel as it is now. As a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Philippines has deviated from this principle and naturally does not have the support of the other nine member states.
Based on the above nine reasons, the article finally concludes that the Philippines should relearn ASEAN's peaceful approach when resolving differences between China and the Philippines.
The publication of such an article shows that Filipinos have begun to reflect on why the Philippine approach to the South China Sea issue has been isolated by other ASEAN member states.
In fact, it can also be understood that Marcos made seven mistakes in handling the differences between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea, ignoring the fragility of the US-Philippine alliance, underestimating China's determination to defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity, and ignoring the calls for peace in other ASEAN countries.
U.S.-Japan-Philippines summit
It is precisely for this reason that Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos's plan to peddle bloc confrontation at the ASEAN summit and encourage other ASEAN countries to adopt a "tough attitude" against China on the South China Sea issue ultimately failed.