Philippines-China Relations: Challenges and Prospects (2015) (original) (raw)
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21st Century Philippine-China Relations: From Distant to Antagonistic Neighbors
Since diplomatic ties between the Philippines and China were established in the mid-1970s, the two neighbors’ bilateral relations have undergone a cycle of indifference, suspicion, cooperation, bickering and now outright antagonism that might lead into a full-blown conflict. This chapter examines the vagaries in Philippine-China relations since 1975. It addresses the main question: how Philippine-China bilateral relation has evolved since the mid-1970s? It also explores the following questions: a) What factors account for the ups and downs in Philippine-China relations? What is the current state of Philippine-China relations? And what is the future of Philippine-China relations?
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The postwar era has enabled the international community to really depend on soft power in the conduct of relations with each other. The creation of the United Nations, and other international organizations has helped manage and prevent disputes and conflicts that would possibly lead to another world war. States have been able to advance their national interests or positions relevant to international issues and negotiate with other States through diplomacy. The shift from hard power to soft power has brought-on the one hand, the rise of international law and international codes of conduct that became the " great equalizer " of States that manifested the consciousness " right is might " , rather " might is right " ; and on the other hand, has grounded States into a more complex form of relationships, having the victors of the war yielding greater power and dominance in the said institutions-hence, the opportunities and challenges of the new world order. This paper intends to present an example of the double-edged sword aspect of the new world order of the postwar era. It shall reflect on a contemporary international issue, the South China Sea dispute, and try to look into how it has changed the landscape of international affairs in the Philippine perspective. Further, the geopolitics of the Southeast Asian region and its collective aspirations relevant to the issue will be looked into against the success or failure of the exercise of soft power/ diplomacy. However, this essay is only limited into contextualizing the issue and does not intend to formulate recommendations and suggestive actions. All of these shall be done in order to evaluate the present conditions of the postwar Philippines with respect to foreign policies and the promotion of its national interests as a sovereign nation.
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