Why Sara Duterte is changing her tone on the Philippines' South China Sea conflict
South China Morning Post analysis says Vice-President Sara Duterte has visibly softened her rhetoric on the Philippines-China stand-off in recent weeks. The piece reads the shift as a calculated balance between her 2028 presidential bid and the Duterte family's political legacy.
In an analysis by Raissa Robles for the South China Morning Post, Vice-President Sara Duterte described the Philippines-China South China Sea dispute as something that 'can be resolved through bilateral dialogue' during a recent speech in Davao. Compared with her earlier sharper line, this is being read as a clear tonal shift.
Stratbase ADR Institute President Dindo Manhit, based in Manila, said the change may be linked to electoral calculations. Analysts argue Sara Duterte is searching for a balanced position so as not to lose the base built by her father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, whose foreign-policy orientation was viewed as closer to Beijing.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said Beijing appreciates 'rational voices in Manila'. The circle around Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. prefers to read the new positioning as a 'domestic political tactic'. ASEAN foreign ministers are scheduled to meet in Jakarta next month.
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