2020～2021年菲律宾国防：军事现代化进程遇阻与防务合作多元化提速

Abstract:Affected by the Covid-19，the Philippines’ overseas military activities were once closed and stagnated in 2020. The annual Philippine-US joint military exercise “Balikatan 2020” was cancelled due to the pandemic，and the frequency of face-to-face bilateral dialogues has also decreased. Objectively speaking，this situation has created an opportunity for the Rodrigo Duterte government to reconsider the Philippine-US alliance. In addition，the Philippine defense department is challenged by the lack of funds，materials，and talents. Thus，whether procurement plans in the second horizon of the “AFP modernization program” can be completed on schedule still left unknown. In this context，the Philippines has diversified its weapons procurement sources and arms cooperation，and focuses on developing defense partnership with non-traditional defense partner countries such as India. In terms of relations with China，the Duterte administration continues to uphold the hedging strategy and strengthen military cooperation with China in low-sensitivity areas. Particularly，the pandemic prevention materials and vaccine provided by China to the Philippine army provide new possibilities for enhancing mutual trust between them.

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