The upcoming presidential elections in the United States would likely have no major effects on its policies with the Philippines, Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel “Babe” Romualdez said Sunday.
In a radio interview, Romualdez said the presidential elections on 5 November, which will pit rivals -- incumbent Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump, would hardly affect its bilateral ties with the Philippines.
“For me, we’re fairly calm, and I don’t think we’re going to have a major change in the policies of the United States as far as our alliance is concerned,” he said.
Romualdez, who has served as the country’s top diplomat in the US since 2017 and was reappointed by his cousin, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., in 2022, said he received assurances from both camps.
“Luckily for me, I’m here, and I presented my credentials to Trump in 2017. So, I got to know most of the people around former President Trump, as well as his national security advisers and others who are now part of the Trump campaign. I’m in touch with them,” he said.
“They told me that their policies will more or less be the same,” he added.
The Philippine diplomat said that the camp of Harris also vowed to carry the same policies by incumbent President Joe Biden, who gave way to Harris as the Democratic presidential bet on the elections.
“It’s clear with Vice President Harris because, of course, she’s from the Democratic Party. That’s who we’re talking to here. That’s who President [Ferdinand] Marcos [Jr.] met when he came here to Washington twice,” he said.
During Trump’s presidency, the Philippines, under the administration of former President Rodrigo Duterte, turned away from its traditional ally, the US, and developed closer ties with its archrival, China.
In an effort to rebuild Washington and Manila’s relations, Biden repeatedly assured the Philippines of its commitment to the Mutual Defense Treaty amid Beijing’s growing aggression in the West Philippine Sea.
China’s expansive claims, which cover almost the entire South China Sea, are anchored on their so-called nine-dash line, overlapping with the exclusive economic zones of the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Taiwan and Vietnam.
Recently, confrontations between the Philippine Coast Guard and China Coast Guard and militia vessels have significantly increased, particularly in the West Philippine Sea.
China’s illegal actions against Philippine vessels and crew members have included the use of water cannons, laser pointing, dangerous maneuvers, and ramming of boats, among other hostile tactics.
This, despite the 2016 ruling of the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, Netherlands that cemented Manila’s claims in the West Philippine Sea, rejecting China’s nine-dash line claim.
China, by using its militaristic approach, has continued to reject the arbitral ruling and stood by its “historic rights” over the South China Sea.