Marcos Jr. personally bid farewell to the Chinese ambassador with an unprecedented low posture. He also made a rare statement on the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait. What signal did he send?

Philippine President Marcos met with Chinese Ambassador Yuan Tse Li

On September 25, Philippine President Marcos personally appeared to the Chinese ambassador to the Philippines, Huang Tian, who is leaving office.

In the scene, he actively shrugged his hand with the ambassador, smiling all the way. It was also emphasized many times ¡°Filipino relations should not be defined by disputes in the South China Sea.¡±And reaffirmedThe Philippines upholds the ¡°one China¡± policy.¡£

Such a low gesture, compared with previously many times in the South China Sea issue to show a tough statement against China, as well as in the question of Taiwan, has formed a marked contrast.

Why does Mr Marcos show an unprecedented moderation to the Chinese ambassador as protests intensify in the Philippines?

Behind this farewell, there is not only pure diplomatic etiquette, but also Marcos Jr. 's deep calculations to deal with domestic and diplomatic dilemmas.

Philippine people rally to protest

Looking back at the last few weeks in the Philippines, the domestic situation has long been in turmoil.

In late September, an anti-corruption protest called "Trillion Peso *" swept across more than 20 cities in the Philippines, and tens of thousands of people took to the streets to protest the serious corruption of the Philippine government in flood control infrastructure projects.

More than 30 high-ranking government officials were involved, and even Marco's cousin (then House Speaker Romualdes) was forced to resign as chairman due to the scandal.

The massive protests have plunged Marcos, who has been in power for just over three years, into the worst crisis since he took office.

Philippine Vice President Sarah and Little Marcos

What makes Marcos Jr. even more troublesome is that political opponents are also taking the opportunity to attack.

Vice President Sara Duterte had previously publicly made threatening remarks, saying, "If something happens to me, the Marcos Jr. and his cousin will not be at peace." The contradiction between the two camps has long been made public.

Under internal worries, Marcos Jr. urgently needs a breakthrough to divert people's attention and stabilize the crumbling ruling foundation, and "showing goodwill" in the diplomatic field has become his most feasible choice in the short term.

For Marcos Jr., choosing to show goodwill to China is not only a public relations strategy to deal with the internal crisis, but also a realistic compromise under the game between China and the United States.

Joint military exercises.

Previously, he had been trying to "step on the tightrope" between China and the United States.Strengthening military cooperation with the United States, frequent participation in joint military exercises and even allowing U.S. troops to use Philippine military bases;

He also hopes to maintain economic cooperation with China, after all. China is the largest trading partner of the Philippines and an important source of investment for the Philippines.

However, the "support" of the United States has always remained verbal. After many military exercises, it has neither brought the promised economic assistance to the Philippines nor provided substantial help on the South China Sea issue.

Instead, let the Philippines gradually become a tool for the United States in its ¡°Indo-Pacific strategy¡±.

Chinese Navy evacuates Philippine ships

On September 16, this year, the Philippines had attempted to send ships into the waters near Yunnan Island, which resulted in the Chinese maritime police being evacuated according to law, and eventually could only be evacuated with a white flag.

Meanwhile, China's control of the Rhineland reef continues to escalate, and the Philippines has failed in several attempts to supply the illegal stranded "Madeira Mountain" warships, and the personnel on the ship are even at risk of bread breaking.

These realities made Marcos Jr. realize,Being tough with China will not only bring benefits, but will aggravate domestic conflictsChina is also losing its important economic partner.

In this context, this delivery is more like a crisis public relations carefully designed by Little Marcos.

Marcos Jr. gradually recognizes reality

Internally, through the attitude of "easing China", we have shaped our ruling image of "putting national interests first" and tried to offset the negative impact of corruption scandals.

He specifically mentioned that he was "willing to promote exchanges and cooperation in various fields in the Philippines", which is to release a signal to the domestic business community and stabilize market confidence.

After all, Chinese investment in infrastructure construction, agriculture and other fields in the Philippines occupies an important position, and if tensions lead to the withdrawal of Chinese capital, it will only aggravate the already fragile Philippine economy.

Sino-Philippine relations

However, whether this low gesture based on real interests can really improve the relationship between the Philippines and China remains a question.

Looking back to the reign of Little Marcus, His diplomatic position has always shaken with the needs of his own interests. ¡ª¡ª

Previously, when the domestic economic situation was good, he had repeatedly been tough with China on the South China Sea issue.

It is now in a crisis of internal affairs and turns out to show a moderate attitude.

Just as the Philippines repeatedly failed last year on the Yellow Island issue, if future Marcos succeeds in resolving the domestic crisis, it is not excluded that he will again adjust his position on the South China Sea issue.

Chinese Ambassador met with Philippine Defense Secretary

All in all, if Marcos Jr. really wants to improve Philippines-China relations, it is far from enough to rely on a low profile of seeing off. He also needs to show sincerity in practical actions, truly abandon the "speculative mentality" and promote the healthy development of bilateral relations with a pragmatic attitude, which is the long-term way.