The need for a genuine independent foreign policy in a multipolar world

IN a changing and evolving world order, from a unipolar to a multipolar world, it's just not enough to pursue an independent foreign policy per se, which in reality is primarily more of a "balancing act" between China and the US concerning the geopolitical realities and challenges the Philippines and the world at large are facing.

As a country, the Philippines needs a genuine and authentic independent foreign policy in every sense, and that would mean complete neutrality and positioning itself as non-aligned. This could be done by downgrading or abrogating the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA), Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), and Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT). This means rejecting outright alignment with the US. Such action will allow the Philippines to have more leverage with China because the apprehension of military encirclement by the US is a top concern of China in the South China Sea (SCS) and even in the Taiwan Strait.