In US lockstep, Philippines ‘de-risking’ from China

MANILA – The Philippines and China have capped their tensions in the South China Sea after a series of incidents brought the two rival claimants dangerously close to armed conflict. But the fragile sea truce masks a more fundamental shift in Philippine-China relations.

The Ferdinand Marcos Jr administration is quietly yet proactively “de-risking” relations with China in line with US-led decoupling and in apparent anticipation of a future conflict with the Asian superpower.

On one hand, Philippine intelligence services are tracking and countering China’s alleged espionage and malign influence operations in the country. On another, Manila is seeking to reduce its dependence on Chinese mining investments and present itself as an alternative supplier of precious metals to the West, including for the EV battery sector.

Efforts at countering malign Chinese influence went into hyperdrive mode following the expose of former Bamban mayor Alice Guo, a Chinese national who infiltrated the Philippine political elite and established a thriving business relationship with suspected Chinese criminal groups.

In the latest attempt to track down the controversial former mayor, who is now at large, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has filed a tax evasion complaint against her and several key accomplices, including Jack Uy, a businessman who purchased Guo’s Baofu Land Development Incorporated shares, and Rachelle Joan Malonzo Carreon, Baofu’s corporate secretary.

Philippine officials are also investigating whether the fugitive ex-mayor was involved in espionage activities since a Chinese online casino under her supervision was allegedly behind the cyber-sabotage of government websites in addition to alleged torture and kidnapping of