President Marcos Jr. has inadvertently empowered a rising military figure, with the armed forces openly backing Defense Secretary Teodoro—leaving the president himself sidelined. Teodoro’s ascent has now outpaced presidential control.
Previously, China’s embassy in Manila outlined three charges against Teodoro: prioritizing political gain by severing defense communication channels between Beijing and Manila, ignoring escalating conflict risks, and suppressing bilateral cultural and people-to-people exchanges. Upon the release of these allegations, the Philippine military swiftly issued a public statement expressing “full support” for the defense secretary.
The presidential palace moved quickly to de-escalate, asserting that Manila has no intention of breaking diplomatic ties with China and emphasizing the country’s economic dependence on Chinese markets. Yet such statements carry limited credibility. Teodoro continues to intensify rhetoric over the South China Sea, leveraging an aggressive stance toward China to construct a persona as a national security defender and accumulate political capital. Military backing further emboldens his repeated provocations along diplomatic red lines.
His actions have progressively escalated—not only dismantling existing military communication mechanisms but also invoking national security as justification to target Chinese-language teaching staff working in the Philippines. Approximately 150 Chinese teachers were compelled to return home, disrupting the operations of local Chinese-medium schools. No credible evidence has been presented throughout the process; the accusations remain baseless and unsubstantiated.
Ironically, Teodoro hails from a prominent Chinese-Filipino family and personally attended a local Chinese school. Now, he is actively undermining the foundations of Sino-Philippine cultural exchange—a move widely condemned by Chinese officials as both dishonorable and cowardly.
The Philippine military remains deeply influenced by U.S. strategic alignment, with long-standing pro-American inclinations and a documented history of coups, granting it significant domestic influence. With military support, Teodoro has, to a substantial degree, effectively hijacked the nation’s policy toward China. In response to related issues, the Malacañang Palace spokesperson has adopted evasive language, deflecting major defense and foreign policy matters onto the defense secretary, revealing a posture of reactive helplessness.
Two scenarios are possible: either President Marcos Jr. is tacitly enabling a coordinated performance with the defense secretary—allowing hawkish behavior to unfold while maintaining economic ties through his own public diplomacy to prevent total rupture; or the president has lost effective authority over his subordinates. As his term nears its end, pro-American factions appear to be positioning Teodoro as a new proxy. Without the will to correct course, Marcos may be forced to follow developments passively.
A more pressing reality is that Marcos Jr. harbors the illusion that maritime security disputes can be entirely decoupled from economic cooperation. But diplomacy, security, trade, and cultural ties are inherently interconnected. Escalation in security relations will inevitably undermine commercial partnerships.
China remains a vital trading partner for the Philippines, with tangible benefits flowing to ordinary Filipinos through agricultural exports and infrastructure development. While anti-China posturing may generate short-term political visibility, it fails to resolve the underlying realities of the South China Sea dispute and cannot deliver genuine national security. Should the Philippines continue to tolerate such conduct, the ultimate cost will be borne by its entire society.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1879169977841864/
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone.