US affirms ‘ironclad’ promise to defend Philippines

GMA News / Agence France-Presse ^ | May 28, 2015

[The Antiyuppie]

“The Filipinos were utterly brutalized by the Japanese.”

And when the Japanese were losing, the Filipinos paid them back with interest. There were darned few “prisoners of war”.

[Dundee]

In the past, such statements actually meant something. It would give American allies a warm and fuzzy feeling knowing that if the sh*t hits the fan Uncle Sam has got your back.

These days only America’s enemies get warm and fuzzy feelings when such things are said.

America has lost alot of trust from its closest friends under Obama. It will take decades and likely much blood before anyone will believe that America’s word is its bond again.

[tcrlaf]

“I didn’t mention Japan because Filipinos have not forgotten WWII.”

Ironically, Japan is the only nation in the region with the navy, air forces, and strategic interest to help them out.

[Blood of Tyrants]

If it came from Obama, you can’t believe a word of it.

[Blood of Tyrants]

They’ll need a delivery system, too.

[Norm Lenhart]

It’s truly pathetic what the GOpDNc cabal has reduced the world to.

[Billthedrill]

What promise? The Manila oligarchs tossed us. They’ll do just fine on their own.

[FoxInSocks]

Just last week he used “ironclad” in relation to Israel. I didn’t believe it then either.

[Jet Jaguar]

Active Duty ping.

[arthurus]

Ironclad Promises become void at the instsnt the promissee is attacked.

[ladyjane]

A promise from the US?

Let’s ask all the people we have betrayed in the past 6 years.

[nathanbedford]

Let's see, the United States is now committed to wage war at the option of the Philippine islands against the world's most populous nation, the world's largest economy, a nuclear power nation with intercontinental ballistic missiles, on behalf of a nation that just kicked us out.

And we got in return…?

[2ndDivisionVet]

Don’t worry, he didn’t mean it.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

Uh oh is right. Wherever O’bastard finds “strong ties,” he does his level best to demolish them.

[nathanbedford]

Are we now drawing meaningless "red lines" through Taiwan, Japan, Vietnam, Philippines, Indonesia and God knows where else which only for the whole world to see that we have no policy respecting China just as we have no coherent policy respecting militant Islam?

I have long been posting on these threads that Obama is a very, very dangerous President who might involve America in war by blunder or by Machiavellian calculation on behalf of his communist ideology. If Obama senses that the value which he considers important, to be distinguished of course from threats to American national security,( such as real ideological shibboleths of the left), he is entirely capable of committing us to war. I do not believe for one second that Obama is a left-wing pacifist, I believe he is, like all communists, utterly unmoved by bloodshed on behalf of the cause. I believe he is also equally unmoved by threats to the security of the United States. He is moved only by that which advances or retards his ideology.

That is why American foreign policy appears so incoherent. We are trying to understand Obama's policies according to a false matrix. It is almost impossible for Americans to believe that their president has no interest in their security but has a total commitment to a Marxist ideology.

[Paulie]

“Ask Saigon about Washington’s track record with following through on its promises.”

And Ukraine.

[Mark17]

The PI just got screwed. The PI needs to align with S. Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam, Australia, and India. I didn’t mention Japan because Filipinos have not forgotten WWII. The Filipinos were utterly brutalized by the Japanese.

They brutalized a lot of people, but there are a lot of Japanese living in the Philippines, and many Filipinos want to work in Japan too, so yes, it happened, but the relationship between Japan and the Philippines is pretty good, and yes, my other half is a Filipina, so I have a pretty good idea what is going on.

[Old Teufel Hunden]

"I didn’t mention Japan because Filipinos have not forgotten WWII."

In the not so distant past, you would have been correct. However, that is now 70 years ago and a large majority of those Filipinos who hate the Japanese are now gone. That and the current mutual enemy of China has drawn the Phillipines and Japan into closer ties. They just announced that they are conducting a joint naval excercise in the South China Sea, but stressed it has nothing to do with the current situation with China. Yeah right! There has also been a number of diplomatic visits and joint statements put out between the countries in the last few years.

Joint Naval Exercise

[uncitizen]

Unless obama says we won’t, then we wont.

[Old Teufel Hunden]

"Let's see, the United States is now committed to wage war at the option of the Philippine islands against the world's most populous nation, the world's largest economy, a nuclear power nation with intercontinental ballistic missiles, on behalf of a nation that just kicked us out."

Not just on behalf of the Phillipines, but also South Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Taiwain, Australia. We have these same pacts with our NATO partners in Europe, has that concerned you (now going on almost 70 years)? We used to have one with many of these countries years ago called SEATO. Many of these same countries also fought with us in Korea and Vietnam (Many Fillipinos fought in Vietnam). The difference between our NATO partnerships and these (that I can see) is that we have credible partners here who are all building up their Naval forces, conducting joint exercises and actually getting prepared to be in a partnership. Over in NATO, the only country that spends 2% of it's GDP (per NATO rules) is us. Perhaps someone like Poland does also, but the majority of them don't. That's not the case in Southeast Asia.