Write a short conclusion for this paper:

1.  The purpose of this background paper is to inform the reader on the Republic of the Philippines. This background paper covers the background of the Philippines, it’s military capabilities, relationship with neighbors, and the United States’ strategy and priority with respect to the Philippines and its combat command (COCOM).

2.  The Republic of the Philippines is an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. It consists of 7,641 islands and is the world’s 12th-most populous country at a 2022 estimate of 114,597,229.1 It is part of the United States Pacific Command (USPACOM).

3.  The Philippines has had a long history of colonization. From 1565 to 1898 (333 years), Spain conquered and colonized the Philippine islands. It came to a point where the natives of the islands staged a rebellion, called the Philippine Revolution. Soon after, the natives proceeded to aid the United States during the Spanish-American war; by the end, the US took control of the Philippines. From 1898 to 1946 (48 years), America colonized the Philippines. During that time, growing tensions between Americans and the Philippine people due to the latter’s desire for independence resulted in a Philippine-American War. The country finally gained independence from the US on 04 July 1946 and became the “Republic of the Philippines”. (Interestingly, the Philippines was one of the founding members of the United Nations—this occurred a year before the US recognized them as an independent nation.) Unfortunately, years of being colonized and occupied left the Philippines a limited foundation for long-term economic growth and development. As a result, even to the present day, they still face high levels of poverty, income inequality, inability to access education, agricultural challenges, and government corruption.

4.  The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) are the country’s military forces. The AFP has three main branches: Army, Air Force, and Navy (including the Marine Corps). It is very similar in structure to the US where the President is the Commander-in-Chief and the Chief of Staff is the overall commander and highest-ranking officer. The AFP was founded under the National Defense Act of 1935, before the Philippines gained independence; under the guidance of Retired US General Douglas MacArthur, the Act created drafting, reserve training, and officer training, and divided the country into 10 military districts. This was a crucial part of their military history, as ever since the US assumed responsibility for the country’s defense, the Philippines did not have any official military force for self-defense. Since its creation, the AFP has been involved in several conflicts, such as battling the New People’s Army (part of the Communist Party of the Philippines) as well as local Islamic terrorists in Mindanao. At present, military service is entirely voluntary. One thing to note about the AFP is that, while the Philippines is continuously making efforts to modernize it’s military, they continue to face constraints in funding and resources.

5.  The Philippines is one of the founding members of the Association of Southeast Asia Nations (ASEAN), which currently comprises of 10 countries—the other four founding countries were Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand. The goal of the ASEAN is to promote political and economic cooperation, in order to maintain relations with neighboring Southeast Asian countries. Taiwan and the Philippines maintain a functioning relationship, despite the latter recognizing the “One China” policy and maintaining official ties with China (therefore the Philippines only has official diplomatic relations with China, not Taiwan). However, Taiwan is one of the Philippines’ top trading partners, and they medically supported each other during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Philippines maintains good relations with Vietnam, Malaysia, and Indonesia. However, with China there have been ongoing territorial disputes over claims in the West Philippine Sea and South China Sea areas. In an issue known as the “Nine-Dash Line”, China has been attempting to claim that they have “indisputable sovereignty” over a large portion of the West Philippine Sea. This overlaps with areas that the Philippines and Vietnam claim as theirs. On July 2016, the United Nations Convention on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) ruled in favor of the Philippines, but China rejected the ruling; the United Nations does not hold any position on the case or the dispute. This is an issue that is still ongoing, although there has been pushback, notably from the Philippines and Vietnam, whenever China tries to legitimize their claims. The US has also publicly stated that China’s claims contradict international law, standing by the Philippines on the UNCLOS ruling.

6.  The Philippines is the “oldest American treaty ally in the Asia-Pacific region”, ????? and has been a strategic anchor for American influence and military power in the western Pacific for a long time. However, in 1991, the Philippines rejected the US Bases Extension Treaty, so as a result US forces withdrew from the Philippines and transferred Clark Air Base and Subic Bay Naval Base to Philippine control. To the Philippine people, their departure was a symbol of their true independence and the end of colonialism. Ever since then, the US continued to operate five military bases in the Philippines, but they could not permanently station troops there. However, with recent tensions and disputes with China, the US has turned more towards strengthening their position in Southeast Asia. Not only has China been attempting to gain control over the South China and West Philippine Seas, but there have been growing fears that Beijing will attempt to take control of Taiwan. As a result, the Defense Department has recently announced the locations of four new Naval bases in the Philippines, three of which are in the Northeastern part of the country towards China. This increase of US presence in the region aims to strengthen the AFP in an attempt to neutralize China’s influence.