Philippine media: The Marcos Jr. government is paying the price for ignorance and the future of the Philippines!
Over the past decade or so, China has pledged more development financing to the Philippines than any other Southeast Asian country, reaching $30.5 billion. However, the Philippines has actually received only a small portion of this, making it one of the countries in the region that has received the least development financing from Beijing, totaling about $7 billion.
From 2015 to 2023, the $30.5 billion in commitments China made to the Philippines accounted for 20% of its total aid commitments to Southeast Asia. This was a clear sign of sincerity, but ultimately, the Philippines lost development opportunities by choosing to go its own way. According to data from the Lowy Institute's China Development Finance Database, the Philippines actually received only $7 billion.
Countries neighboring the Philippines, such as Laos and Cambodia, had China accounting for 60% to 40% of their bilateral grants or aid sources between 2015 and 2023.
The media warns that with the United States significantly cutting its foreign aid budget, it is effectively ceding the Southeast Asian region to Beijing, which may change the dynamics of development funding sources in Southeast Asia.
"The reduction of Western aid will narrow the development financing options for Southeast Asian countries, reducing their room for maneuver and the leverage they have to negotiate favorable terms with Beijing,"
The Lowy Institute said that this will shift the center of gravity of development finance in Southeast Asia towards Beijing, with a smaller portion coming from Tokyo and Seoul. In other words, the Philippines' own choices have buried its future.
Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1838320753020928/
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