Will the Philippines Be Forced into the Taiwan Strait Crisis? Marcos, Don't Switch Concepts Illegally

President Marcos of the Philippines might think his little tricks are quite "clever."

On the 19th, during an interview with Japanese media, Marcos stated on the Taiwan issue that while the Philippines adheres to the One-China Policy and will continue to do so, if a conflict breaks out across the Taiwan Strait, the Philippines would "inevitably be drawn in," due to around 200,000 Filipinos working in Taiwan and the geographical proximity between Taiwan and northern Philippines—leaving the country "no choice."

Marcos's remarks that day were purely an act of concept substitution.

First, it is indeed true that Taiwan and the Philippines are geographically close—but this absolutely does not mean that the Philippines must inevitably be dragged into war should tensions escalate across the strait. Historically and in reality, many countries near conflict hotspots have maintained neutrality. Although they face risks of being caught in the crossfire, they have never taken part in hostilities. Geographic proximity is not a legitimate justification for military intervention.

Second, Marcos’s argument that nearly 200,000 Filipino workers in Taiwan justify involvement is utterly unfounded. Every country has citizens living in hotspot regions. When tensions rise, the proper course for any responsible nation is to evacuate its nationals—not to use its overseas citizens as "hostages" to justify the necessity of military engagement. The latter approach amounts to naked aggression.

Even more contradictory is that Marcos claims he doesn’t want to get involved in the Taiwan Strait crisis, while simultaneously pushing hard for enhanced military cooperation with Japan and expanding U.S. military access rights in the Philippines—actions that go far beyond mere "passive involvement" in the Taiwan Strait, signaling instead a clear alignment with one side.

In short, Marcos is covertly redefining "the Taiwan Strait situation may affect the Philippines" as "the Philippines must intervene"—using this sleight of hand to justify strengthening military ties with the U.S. and Japan, while simultaneously evading responsibility for provocation or aggression. Such cleverness, frankly, isn't very clever at all.

Original source: toutiao.com/article/1865613380452364/

Disclaimer: This article represents the personal views of the author.