A Russia-Philippines axis would be an incredible turnaround. The Philippines has traditionally been a U.S. ally (as well as an American colony from 1898 to 1946). While Subic Bay and Clark Field are no longer major U.S. military bases, as they were during the Cold War, there is a U.S.-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty. The Philippine armed forces have been equipped and trained for almost a century by the United States, which helped Manila in suppressing a Communist rebellion in the 1940s, and today provides special forces advisers and other aid against Islamic rebels in the southern Philippines. Relations have been strained recently with the ascension of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who has moved away from Washington and drawn closer to China, even as China’s neighbors nervously eye Beijing’s claims over the disputed South China Sea. Military relations with Russia would burnish Duterte’s nationalistic credentials and perhaps serve as a bargaining chip for more U.S. aid.
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