- The US has dominated the foreign and domestic policy of the Southeast Asian country of the Philippines for decades, having formally ruled the nation as a colony from 1898-1946; - The Philippines has been used for US military basing throughout the Cold War and is now enlarging its military footprint on the Philippines under the government of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.; - It was under President Rodrigo Duterte that the US was being pressured to leave the nation while also expanding closer ties with China who was and still is the Philippines’ largest trade partner; - Today, infrastructure projects underway during President Duterte’s administration have been literally torn down, instead military bases are being built to point missiles at the Philippines’ largest trade partner, China; - The US through the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) has created large numbers of media platforms, political organizations, and education programs meant to convince the Philippine people that serving US foreign policy objectives is in their own best interests; - The ultimate irony is that these US efforts have convinced Filipinos that fighting China is necessary to protect their sovereignty, when in fact US influence over Philippine foreign policy already constitutes the usurpation of Philippine sovereignty; - Ukraine provides an example of where this process of the US using the Philippines as a proxy against China ultimately leads if the Philippine people are unable to recognize their current government is serving US interests at the expense of their own interests; A previous video about the YSEALI program mentioned in this report: The New Atlas - Modern American Imperialism Part 2: Building Eager Armies Helping Colonize their own Nations (May 2024): https://youtu.be/_BkhYL6HNms?si=0DOu7NOsEgg40_BH References: NEO - The Philippines: Why it is Choosing US Destruction Over Chinese Construction: https://journal-neo.su/2024/07/03/the-philippines-why-it-is-choosing-us-destruction-over-chinese-construction/ SCMP - China-Philippines ties on ‘brink of total breakdown’: unpacking the collapse (June 29, 2024): https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3268506/china-philippines-ties-brink-total-breakdown-unpacking-collapse AP - China publicizes for the first time what it claims is a 2016 agreement with Philippines (May 3, 2024): https://apnews.com/article/china-south-china-sea-philippines-alleged-agreement-0006abb98502727972872bcecfd49a51 SCMP - South China Sea: Philippine admiral at centre of ‘new deal’ saga breaks silence on alleged pact with Beijing (May 2024): https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3263692/south-china-sea-philippine-admiral-centre-new-deal-saga-breaks-silence-alleged-pact-beijing US State Department, Office of the Historian - The Philippine-American War, 1899–1902: https://history.state.gov/milestones/1899-1913/war Rappler - Duterte falsely claims CIA funds Rappler (October 2017): https://www.rappler.com/philippines/185098-duterte-false-claim-cia-funds-rappler-american-ownership/ National Endowment for Democracy (NED) - Nobel Peace Prize Winner Maria Ressa Joins World Movement for Democracy at NED as Chairperson (October 2022): https://www.ned.org/nobel-peace-prize-winner-maria-ressa-joins-world-movement-for-democracy-at-ned-as-chairperson/ WDM - Maria Ressa – Chair: https://www.movedemocracy.org/person/maria-ressa-chair NYT - Political Meddling by Outsiders: Not New for U.S. (1997): https://www.nytimes.com/1997/03/31/us/political-meddling-by-outsiders-not-new-for-us.html NYT - MISSIONARIES FOR DEMOCRACY: U.S. AID FOR GLOBAL PLURALISM (1986): https://www.nytimes.com/1986/06/01/world/missionaries-for-democracy-us-aid-for-global-pluralism.html The Guardian - US campaign behind the turmoil in Kiev (November 2004): https://www.theguardian.com/world/2004/nov/26/ukraine.usa NYT - U.S. Groups Helped Nurture Arab Uprisings (April 2011): https://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/15/world/15aid.html Reuters - Pentagon ran secret anti-vax campaign to undermine China during pandemic (June 14, 2024): https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/usa-covid-propaganda/ Where to Find My Work: Website: https://landdestroyer.blogspot.com/ Telegram: https://t.me/brianlovethailand Twitter: https://twitter.com/BrianJBerletic Odysee (YouTube alternative): https://odysee.com/@LandDestroyer:8 Rumble (YouTube alternative): https://rumble.com/c/c-1459863 Weibo: https://weibo.com/u/7726044004 ไบรอัน แฟนคลับ (Facebook): https://facebook.com/BrianThaiFanclub/ Line Group: https://lin.ee/JIxTpKe Gab: https://gab.com/BrianBerletic VK (Facebook alternative): https://vk.com/brianberletic How to Support my Work (and thank you!): Buy Me A Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/TheNewAtlas Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/landdestroyer PromptPay: 0851547235