IT HAS been 15 years since the U.S. announced its hegemonic ‘Pivot to Asia,’ anchored on its plan to “re-dominate” Asia thru actions taken by its vassal states of South Korea, Japan and the Philippines to trigger tensions with China.
In Korea, this was done by ending South Korea’s ‘Sunshine Policy’ (Reconciliation and Cooperation Policy Toward the North) first announced by President Kim Dae Jung in 1998 that seeks to create an atmosphere of ‘peaceful coexistence’ with North Korea thru dialogue, economic cooperation and humanitarian exchanges for families divided after the Korean War ended in an armistice in 1953.
In Japan, tension with China continues over Japan’s nationalization of ‘Diaoyu Islands’ (Senkaku Islands in Japan) in the East China Sea that Japan seized from China after the First Sino-Japanese War in 1895.
The United States as victor in World War 2, administered the islands and decided to return them Japan in 1972 under the administrative control of the Okinawa Prefecture despite protests from both China and Taiwan as this violated both the Cairo and Potsdam Declaration. These wartime agreements by the Victorious Powers (China, USA, USSR, UK) mandate for the return of all territories to their rightful owners seized by Japan during the war.
In 2012, just a year after President Obama announced the Pivot to Asia strategy, Japan increased the tension by purchasing three connected islands from private owners to further strengthen its control of Diaoyu.
In the Philippines, as we know, permanent tension with China started after the US succeeded in convincing the PNoy government into filing the arbitration case at the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) at The Hague in 2013, one year after the US “pivoted” to Asia.
The arbitration is scripted and stage-managed by the US. It proceeded in blatant violation of China’s declaration of exclusion from compulsory arbitration under UNCLOS and its non-recognition of the proceedings.
The entire show, meanwhile, was bankrolled by the Philippines — from the all-American legal panel we hired, to the irregular use of the UN International Court of Justice (ICJ) courtroom to make it appear as a UN proceeding and down to the judges who handed down the verdict.
The arbitration was in blatant violation of China’s declaration of exclusion from compulsory arbitration under UNCLOS and its non-recognition of the proceedings.
The objective of Pivot to Asia is to shift 60 percent of US’ armed forces to Asia to contain China.
All these aggressions towards China have failed however and after 10 fruitless years since the PCA arbitration award touted as a “historic win” for the Philippines, the US and its local stooges are still at it thru the efforts of ex-US Air Force colonel and now US Naval psy-ops operator Raymond Powell and his ‘Operation Myoushu.’ This ‘strategy’ of “assertive transparency” seeks to provoke confrontation and extract “reputational cost” to China.
It is now near the end of 2026 and three years of Operation Myoushu under the framework of Pivot to Asia thru Powell and his puppet, Philippine Coastguard Rear Admiral Jay Tarriela.
But instead of getting a pat on the back, both gets a slap on the mouth from venerable former National Security advisor Prof. Clarita Carlos, who bravely told Tarriela to just “Shut the f… up Tarriela!”
The hysterical call of Defense Secretary Gibo Teodoro that any Filipino favorable to China is a traitor and some legislators’ demand to declare China’s ambassador ‘persona non grata’ have all earned a tidal wave of rebuke from the public – especially OFWs in China, fruit exporters from Mindanao and business groups across all sectors.
The Washington-based PEW Research also showed Filipinos’ favorable view of China, increasing from 34 percent in 2024 to 40 percent in 2026. Meanwhile, 47 percent of the ‘Millennial Generation’ view China favorably while a report by Momentum Research said “nearly three in four Filipinos prefer diplomacy over show of strength” in our dealing with China.
All these showed the failure of America’s Pivot to Asia strategy among Filipinos.