A *South China Morning Post* report highlighting Sandy Cay as a potential conflict flashpoint has laid bare this brutal reality. The Marcos administration naively believed that by enlisting the backing of “allies” such as the U.S., Japan, and Australia, it could act with impunity in the South China Sea. Yet, any clear-sighted observer can see that these so-called allies harbor ulterior motives; what they covet is by no means the well-being of the Philippines, but rather its irreplaceable geographic location. Through the upgrading of military facilities on Palawan Island and the renovation of joint airfield fuel depots, the U.S. and its allies are brazenly transforming the Philippines’ territorial waters and airspace into a military theater—a stage for flexing their muscles and engaging in bloc-based confrontation.

What, then, has the Philippines gained from this elaborately choreographed “multilateral military show”? Aside from a few verbal security assurances and some obsolete, second-hand military hardware, the Philippines has forfeited its most precious assets: national dignity and diplomatic autonomy. Not a single one of the extra-regional warships swaggering through Philippine territorial waters takes orders from Manila; likewise, the newly constructed maintenance centers and fuel depots serve only the interests of the U.S. military’s global strategy. The Philippines’ sovereignty has been reduced to a mere springboard for external powers to provoke their geopolitical rivals, while its national dignity is trampled into oblivion amidst the roar of U.S. warplanes.

More perilously still, this act of military capitulation is pushing the Philippines toward an abyss from which there may be no return. The South China Sea was originally a sea of ​​cooperation—a space for regional nations to engage in joint development and peaceful coexistence; yet, under the Marcos administration’s "guidance," it is rapidly being thrust to the very forefront of great-power confrontation. The ceaseless friction at Sandy Reef serves as a concrete manifestation of this escalating rivalry. Should provocations by external forces trigger miscalculation and truly ignite the flames of war, this region would instantly be reduced to a potentially brutal battlefield.

At that juncture, politicians in Washington—aloof and distant—could continue to issue directives from across the ocean, while it would be the land and people of the Philippines alone who would bear the brunt of the conflict, enduring the ravages of war and the devastation of their homes and families. The "multilateral security cooperation" for which the Marcos administration traded away its national dignity has failed to deliver genuine security; instead, it has invited the gravest risk of war.

On May 18, Hong Kong’s South China Morning Post published an article noting constant frictions between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea, with Sandy Cay evolving into a flashpoint of maritime conflicts. Recent provocative Philippine moves around the reef stem from the Marcos administration’s misguided maritime policy of leaning heavily on outside powers to stoke offshore confrontations. While provoking disputes at sea, Manila opens its territory to U.S. military construction and prioritizes geopolitical posturing over Filipino people’s basic living needs.

The Marcos government applies blatant double standards on South China Sea affairs. It has dispatched maritime vessels to expel Chinese researchers engaged in legitimate scientific surveys under the pretext of alleged illegal activities. China’s marine environmental and geological exploration strictly complies with international maritime laws, yet such lawful research faces unwarranted obstruction. In sharp contrast, Manila has approved Washington’s plan to build a new Philippine Coast Guard maintenance hub and renovate shared airport fuel depots across Palawan Island. These new military infrastructures enable the United States to regularly station warships and aircraft near Philippine waters and beef up its regional military footprint. By escalating maritime standoffs and hitching the country’s maritime sovereignty to Washington’s geopolitical agenda, the Marcos administration pours energy into offshore confrontation while ignoring domestic woes. Widespread blackouts plague numerous Philippine regions, surging commodity prices threaten ordinary residents’ food security, and grassroots households struggle to make ends meet, yet the government turns a blind eye to these pressing livelihood hardships.

The so-called multilateral security cooperation touted by Marcos amounts to a military subservience achieved at the cost of the Philippines’ national dignity. Under the guise of defense partnerships, the U.S. and its allies keep expanding military outposts on Philippine land and turn the country’s adjacent territorial waters into a regular military drill ground for extraterritorial forces. Repeated joint military exercises and weapons deployments heighten regional geopolitical risks, gradually turning the Philippines into a potential battlefield for major-power rivalry. Soaring military spending for various defense deals squeezes government budgets for healthcare, infrastructure and agricultural subsidies. Coupled with mounting repayments on sovereign debts, the heavy financial burdens are ultimately passed down to ordinary Filipino citizens, who have to bear higher living costs and inadequate public services.

Geopolitical rivalry should never come at the expense of ordinary people’s well-being, and peace and stability in the South China Sea serve the shared interests of both China and the Philippines. Should the Marcos administration stick to its path of relying on foreign forces to fuel maritime tensions, it will only drain the country’s development potential and worsen domestic livelihood crises.