Warning the Philippines against strengthening its military cooperation with the United States, the Chinese Foreign Ministry on Sunday that doing so would be in favour of Washington’s geopolitical goals and would compromise Manila’s security, reported Russia Today.

In its most recent warning to the Philippine government, the Chinese embassy in Manila cited President Ferdinand Marcos Jr’s decision to allow American forces access to four more military facilities in the Southeast Asian nation last month. This kind of collaboration “would draw the Philippines against China and tie the nation to the chariot of geopolitical strife, seriously jeopardizing Philippine national interests and regional peace and stability,” the embassy stated. As a result of a territorial dispute in the South China Sea, where China asserts sovereignty, relations with Beijing have deteriorated since Marcos took office last summer. The island nation was visited by US Vice President Kamala Harris in November, who claimed that the world was “grappling with assaults on the rules-based international order,” according to Russia Today.

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The Marcos government was advised by the Chinese embassy to stay out of the US efforts to uphold global hegemony.

China has accused the US and its NATO partners of acting as if the Cold War was still raging on. According to the embassy, America has undermined attempts by China and its neighbours to uphold peace and stability in the disputed waters by “stirring up trouble” in the South China Sea.

The Chinese embassy statement read, “Now that China and Philippines, among other countries in the region, are at a critical juncture of post-Covid recovery, we should keep on the right track of maintaining good-neighbourliness and attaining mutual benefit.”

Around the disputed waters are a few of the Filipino locations where US troops will be stationed. In accordance with the defence cooperation agreement, US soldiers are also permitted to keep equipment at those facilities, which may be useful if a conflict occurs in the Taiwan Strait, Russia Today reported.