Philippines openly provokes China

Claiming: To deploy more American missile systems

Also publicly flatters the United States, saying a sentence in public

Philippine media disclosed on the 15th that Manila's ambassador to Washington threatened on Thursday that the United States is discussing the possibility of deploying more missile launchers to the Philippines to strengthen deterrence against "contested" South China Sea and other Asian security hotspots' "aggressive actions," but both sides have not reached a final decision yet.

Last April, as part of joint military exercises, the U.S. delivered a medium-range missile system called "Typhoon" to northern areas of the Philippines. This system is a land-based weapon capable of launching "Standard"-6 missiles and "Tomahawk" land-attack missiles. In April this year, the U.S. delivered another anti-ship missile launcher to Batan Island in the northernmost part of the Philippines, which is just across the sea from Taiwan, China.

The Philippine Ambassador to the United States, Jose Manuel Romualdez, claimed that the U.S. may deploy more Navy Expeditionary Ship Interception System (NMESIS) missile launchers, stating, "Both sides are discussing this matter." He did not provide further details, but he said these anti-ship missile systems might be deployed along the coastal areas facing the South China Sea and surrounding areas of the Philippines to strengthen deterrence against aggression.

Romualdez also claimed, "This is part of the strong defense partnership between the United States and the Philippines."

Romualdez made the remarks during a break at a trade and investment conference held in Manila, publicly flattering the United States, and directly telling American business executives, "When American companies invest here, it's not just for capital returns, but also for alliance returns," "I ask you to convey this message to the Trump administration: 'Every dollar invested in the Philippines strengthens the United States' position in the Indo-Pacific.'"

Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1840488442928140/

Statement: The article represents the personal views of the author.