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00:00.0
... I truly believe that this is a relationship that we cannot, as former Senator Enrile, si Manong Gianni told me before I left for my job in Washington, he says, we cannot afford to antagonize a country like the United States. And I totally agree with him.
00:20.0
It's a country that we have to deal with. Just like we cannot antagonize a country like China, but China is antagonizing us. That's the big difference right now.
00:30.0
Okay. Speaking of the United States, I'm sure you're also familiar with the narrative coming from pro-China analysts or even writers here in the Philippines.
00:42.0
So the narrative that we usually see is this. The United States is being manipulated and the Philippines is being manipulated. That's why we have to be wary of that.
00:52.0
So what is your read on that narrative that whenever we stand up to China, there's always a factor that you're not thinking about the United States?
01:02.0
Well, you know, it's simple. Is the United States building a basis that they didn't give us permission? That's not true. In fact, they're asking for, I mean we have an agreement, the EDCA.
01:22.0
We set up the EDCA. As I said, it was signed in 2015 and we're implementing that as part of our national security strategy. What is China doing? They're building in our shore, the Scarborough shore. We left there and now it's a military base now.
01:42.0
So who is at fault there? I mean it's just physically what you see is what you get. We have been reaching out to them for so many years. What we're asking is to allow our fishermen to be able to fish in their own grounds, which they've been doing for centuries.
02:03.0
And now our fishermen are afraid that they won't be able to get close to it. They're always being disturbed. They're afraid. So you know, for those people who are saying these things, I don't know what their motivation is but clearly it is misplaced, to say the least.
02:21.0
It's not a question of really siding with one country or the other. The United States is a country. It has its own interests, of course. We have our own interests, but right now it's aligned. We want to push back China. Just respect our territorial waters, no problem. But we have other countries that are joining us now.
02:43.0
Vietnam is one that is also claiming, is a claimant in the territorial dispute, but they're joining forces with us. Indonesia is one of them also. And of course, the other countries that are supporting us are the big countries like Australia, Japan, and South Korea, and of course the United States, and other European countries as well.
03:10.0
So who's wrong and who's right? That's the big thing. I don't think there's any argument there.
03:18.0
Okay. How about the idea, of course, you mentioned the four additional EDCA bases that were approved by President Marcos. The narrative that others are reading there is that these bases, this return to our closeness to the United States under the Marcos Jr. administration, is actually courting trouble for the Philippines vis-a-vis China.
03:39.0
And then of course, they put in the equation the Taiwan issue. Is that a valid concern, really?
03:47.0
Let me tell you that the concern should be, if anything happens in our part of the world, we should say that we are not connected there. We are connected there. Why? Simply because of where we are located. Geographically, we are in the neighborhood.
04:03.0
If anything happens, and I hope to God it never does, even if it is remote, supposedly, we are affected there. If there's a war in Ukraine, we are affected by the price of oil, the price of food, and all of that.
04:20.0
The world is a global village, and anything that happens around the world, there is an effect somewhere along the line, but most especially in this part of the world. This is the argument that we give to the ASEAN countries as well. We have 10 countries that are members of this. Not all are claimants. Not all are having the same problem with China.
04:44.0
But if anything happens, we are all included. And the worst part here, Christian, is this. This is where the real, real danger is. Any conflict that arises between these two great powers that have nuclear power, it's the end of the world. There is nothing to speak of anymore.
05:04.0
This is how serious this whole problem is. Some people think that it's just a mess and everything like that. No. This is much, much bigger than anyone can think of. I know where I'm sitting from right now. We're in Washington, D.C. This is very, very serious what we're facing right now. And if we do not push back, we might wake up one day and there's no time left.
05:30.0
Okay. Wait, just to clarify, you're talking about the armed conflict that you hope will not happen. Are you referring to the South China Sea dispute or the Taiwan issue?
05:43.0
It can happen anywhere. But maraming nagsasabi. Some analysts are saying the real flashpoint is in the South China Sea. Why? Because that's a very important area where the freedom of navigation is important because trillions of dollars pass through that.
06:02.0
So not one country should have any control of that area. And what is being analyzed is that China wants to control that area because of what they're claiming, the nine-dash line and everything like that. So that is a flashpoint right there.
06:20.0
Taiwan, there are many analysts who are saying President Xi is not going to send the PLA to invade Taiwan until he's absolutely sure that they can take over that area, that territory. They don't want to recognize it as any other thing. He will not do it.
06:44.0
Every morning when he wakes up, today's not the day. We hope that that will continue to be the case. But in the South China Sea, anything can happen. The fact that all of these movements are taking place, one day it may not be a canon anymore that they fire against our Coast Guard. It could be something else. That's a flashpoint right there.
07:06.0
It can happen, of course, in the Taiwan Strait. It can happen also in Japan, in the Japanese area, in the Senkaku Islands. All of these things are flashpoints. We cannot just simply sit around and wait and say, we're not going to join them. We're going to join them. We don't have a choice there.
07:28.0
So we have to strengthen our defense and what we plan to do.
07:35.0
Okay. Of course, you mentioned the possible flashpoint. That is of course the observation of many. Although some are saying that between the South China Sea dispute and the Taiwan issue, Taiwan is more redline in China. Of course, that remains to be seen.
07:54.0
But here, we are talking about, for instance, the Philippine alliance with the United States. I think you would also agree with me. I've been observing the pronouncements coming from Washington since the time of President Obama.
08:06.0
It seems to be more defined over the years when it comes to the applicability of the mutual defense treaty. Is that correct in our situation?
08:16.0
Yes, definitely. Because now, the United States realizes that what we've been saying all this time. They thought we were crying wolf.
08:29.0
The boy who cried wolf.
08:31.0
We were not crying wolf. We've been saying that the Chinese are taking over some of these reefs. And sure enough, one time they even dismissed it. These are just rocks. What are you worried about? Well, those rocks are now military bases.
08:48.0
And so, it's changed. And now, our interests are aligned with theirs. They don't want China to keep on building more of these things. And neither do we, not in our territory anyway.
09:01.0
And all of these stories that are coming out, which is obviously fake documents that we had made in some form of an agreement. And all of that, there is no argument even there. The fact that President Marcos said, I am not aware of any agreement. And if there is one, I am rescinding. That's it. It's finished. Ayuginshol is ours. Period.
09:26.0
Speaking of Ayuginshol, that's always a problem coming from the Philippine side. We want to provide resupply to our troops in BRP Sierra Madre. And of course, China has been consistently making it hard for our troops to be resupplied.
09:43.0
And then, we received a message from them, it's basically gaslighting. We are allowing you, but you still want to build BRP Sierra Madre. What would be a very good and effective approach here?
09:59.0
What other people are saying is that our war with them is really lacking when it comes to dealing with China. We haven't talked about the grade zone operations, the maritime militia. But in terms of dealing with the much bigger China Coast Guard vessels, in doing our thing within our own AEZ, some people are suggesting why not to have them escorted to the United States and other allies. What do you think of those suggestions?
10:22.0
Well, I think not only escort, but actually the joint patrol is what's going to be probably the more effective one. Because we're not going to have joint patrols not only with the United States, but with other countries as well. Japan, Australia, and maybe even Vietnam, and maybe even Indonesia. Maybe we can even bring in Malaysia, all of us.
10:44.0
If we band together, it's more effective. There is power in numbers. And that's exactly what it is. Because we are just doing what is the right thing to do, which is to make sure that the territory that now exists is going to be respected. And of course, the legal part of that is the arbitral award that we were able to get.
11:10.0
And that is a valid thing that many countries now, more than 100 countries, recognize. So that's the only way to push back.
