Despite Duterte’s fiery anti-US rhetoric, the Philippines and the US retain their strong military alliance. Similarly, on China-Philippines relations, Manila’s bark is worse than its bite — alongside South China Sea disagreements, the two sides have rapidly expanding economic ties. A bilateral (not trilateral) approach, with respect for each side’s red lines, is the key to avoiding escalation and deepening cooperation.

Warming political ties over the past three years are beginning to produce economic and security dividends for both China and the Philippines. However, low public trust in China may not easily dissipate.

Over the past two years, American foreign-policy elites have increasingly cast China not only as a competitor to the United States, but as an enemy on a par with the Soviet Union. Although anti-Chinese rhetoric in the US is not new, President Donald Trump’s administration has greatly sharpened and amplified it. This is despite the deep economic ties between the two countries, a multitude of scientific and educational collaborations, and China’s consistent policy of non-intervention in US affairs.

In a rare moment of bipartisan agreement, America’s Republicans and Democrats are now on the same page on one key issue: Blaming China for all that ails the United States. China bashing has never had broader appeal.

Starting in May, the White House hopes to extinguish Iran’s oil exports. However, any destabilization may prove counter-productive and cause long-term damage to the United States, the region, and global prospects.

The Trump administration’s “America First” style of unilateralism has alienated even longtime European allies. The leaders of France, Germany, the EU Commission, and China have all pledged themselves to support multilateralism — in a sign of the times, Trump’s America is left out in the cold.

American policymakers have grown disappointed with forty years of engaging with China and integrating it into the global system. The US should put aside wishful thinking and accept a new, strong China as an equal partner, and aim for improved mutual understanding through greater communication and exchange — rather than vainly hoping to transform China.

China-US relations have deteriorated from “coopetition” into hostility. If China and the US can find a way back to a constructive path, they both stand to benefit from a “G2” world — and shortsighted attempts by America to maintain a “G1” world of US supremacy will only harm both countries’ global standing.

Huge changes are taking place in Western politics: unprecedentedly young or inexperienced leaders have taken power in Canada, France, Austria, Ukraine, the US, and beyond. This shift shows Western voters’ increasing dissatisfaction with traditional elites and modes of governance. While “new faces” may offer the possibility of reform, the result of inexperienced leadership, especially in the US, has been disruption and chaos.

Recently, Europe has been trying to redefine its economic relationship with China by taking a sterner approach towards its counterpart’s distorted market practice. In the process, China has softened its position out of necessity.