THE United States and China on Wednesday commended the Philippines for the peaceful conduct of the May 9 elections, with Washington describing the recently concluded political exercise as being up to international standards and without major incident.
US State Department spokesperson Ned Price said once the next president is officially proclaimed, Washington looks forward to working with the new leader “on key human rights and regional priorities.”
Price said the US will work “to strengthen the enduring alliance between the United States and the Philippines.”
Asked if the US had any concern that Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., the former senator, would be the next president, Price replied: “What I can say from a technical standpoint is that we understand the casting and counting of votes to have been conducted in line with international standards and without significant incident.”
“The counting is still underway. It is not for us to declare a winner. We’ll wait for the Philippines election authorities to do that. We look forward to working with the president-elect on the shared values and the shared interests that have united our countries across generations,” Price said.
Based on unofficial and partial election returns received by the church-backed election watchdog Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting and authorized media outlets through the Commission on Elections Transparency Media Server, Marcos, son and namesake of the late President Ferdinand Marcos, is leading the presidential race with a huge margin over his closest rival, Vice President Leni Robredo, and eight other candidates.
According to Price, the US sees no change in its relations with its key Asian ally, saying: “It is an enduring alliance that is rooted in a long and deeply interwoven history that shares democratic values and interests and strong people-to-people ties between our countries as friends, as partners, as allies.”
He said the US will also continue to collaborate closely with the Philippines “to advance a free and open, connected, prosperous, secure, and resilient Indo-Pacific region.”
“We’ll also continue, as I said before, to promote respect for human rights and the rule of law which is fundamental to US relations with the Philippines and in other bilateral contexts as well,” Price said.
Meanwhile, China applauded the Philippines for its smooth conduct of the May 9 national and local elections and extended its greetings to the leading candidates.
“We hope and believe that various political forces in the Philippines will continue to work in solidarity for national renewal and development,” China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said, when asked to comment on the May 9 elections.
Zhao added that China and the Philippines, facing each other across the waters, enjoy a long-standing traditional friendship.
“We are good partners for mutually-beneficial cooperation and fellow travelers on the road to common development. Under the strategic guidance of our heads of state, bilateral relations have been steadily upgraded. The flourishing relationship has delivered benefits to both peoples and contributed to regional peace and stability,” the Chinese official said.
Zhao said China will continue to work together with the Philippines to stay committed to good-neighborliness and friendship. Marcos, like his predecessor, is expected to tread carefully between China and the United States, as tensions remain high over territorial incursions into Philippine waters by Chinese ships in the West Philippine Sea.