Amid the tight race between United States presidential candidates Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris heading into the Nov. 5 elections, Philippine Ambassador to Washington Jose Manuel Romualdez believes that there would be “no major change” in the US-Philippine alliance.
(From left) Republican presidential candidate former president Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris (AP photo)
In an interview with Super Radyo dzBB on Sunday, Nov. 3, the envoy admitted how “critical” the US election is for the Philippines.
“Para sa akin, para sa Pilipinas (For me, for the Philippines), of course, importante sa atin na kung sino man ang magiging presidente tsaka ang kanilang (it’s important for us who will will as president and their) foreign policy is what's going to be very critical for us,” he said.
“Para sa akin, medyo kalmado tayo na (For me, we are calm that) I don't think we're going to have a major change in the policy of the United States as far as our alliance is concerned,” he assured.
Noting that the Filipino-American community “is divided” into a “50/50 split” between Harris and Trump, Romualdez dismissed concerns about the possible impact of an either Harris or Trump win on the South China Sea issue.
“Interes din ng Amerika, interest din natin (It is America’s and our interests),” the envoy stressed.
“'Yang tinatawag na freedom of navigation diyan sa South China Sea is important na dapat walang isang bayan na may hawak diyan dahil trillions of dollars ang dumadaan diyan na trade. Maaapektuhan rin ang Amerika (It’s important that the freedom of navigation there in the South China Sea is not controlled by just one country because trillions of dollars of trade pass there. America will also be affected),” he explained.
Trump’s America First policy reportedly includes reducing America’s role in assisting with international conflicts.
But Romualdez expressed confidence that the South China Sea issue would be equally critical to the US because of their supply chain.
“Syempre, hindi naman lahat pwedeng i-manufacture dito sa Amerika sa isang (Of course, they cannot manufacture everything here in America with just a) click of a finger,” the ambassador said, adding that the US needs access to their allies like Japan, Australia, and South Korea.
But the envoy also stressed that the Philippines places more importance on the election results’ impact on foreign investments from the US, Europe, and other countries.