President Joe Biden has congratulated Ferdinand "BongBong" Marcos Jr. for his decisive victory in the Philippines' presidential election earlier this week, in the face of uncertainty over the United State's relationship with the Pacific nation.
Some of that uncertainty was signaled during a U.S. State Department press briefing the day after the Monday, May 9, election in which the son of the late Ferdinand and Imelda Marcos soundly defeated his nearest rival by more than 15 million votes.
"We're monitoring the election results, and we look forward to renewing our special partnership and to working with the next administration on key human rights and regional priorities," State Department spokesperson Ned Price said during the press briefing. "As I said, we look forward to working with the president-elect, once that person is officially named, to strengthen the enduring alliance between the United States and the Philippines."
Price added that the U.S.-Philippine alliance "is rooted in a long and deeply interwoven history" that includes "shared democratic values and interests, and strong people-to-people ties between our countries as friends, as partners, as allies."
"We'll continue to collaborate closely to advance a free and open, connected, prosperous, secure and resilient Indo-Pacific region," Price said. "We'll also continue, as I said before, to promote respect for human rights and the rule of law, which is fundamental to U.S. relations with the Philippines and in other bilateral contexts as well."
Two days later, Biden spoke with president-elect Marco to congratulate him on his victory, according to a readout issued by the White House.
"President Biden underscored that he looks forward to working with the president-elect to continue strengthening the U.S.-Philippine Alliance, while expanding bilateral cooperation on a wide range of issues, including the fight against COVID-19, addressing the climate crisis, promoting broad-based economic growth and respect for human rights," the readout said.
The readout is a clear reflection on the 21-year rule of Marco's father, a dark period marked by corruption and human rights abuses. Reuters reported May 11 about Marcos Jr. "long-standing ties with China" and described his relations with the United States as "complicated" by his refusal to comply with a 1995 U.S. District Court of Hawaii order that the Marcos family pay $2 billion in "plundered wealth to victims of Marcos Sr.'s rule."
Part of the unease on the part of the United States has to do with a leaked draft of the China and Solomon Islands secret security pact, reported in the New York Times in March. The agreement signaled to many that China seeks to increase its influence in the South Pacific.
It is not lost on the United States that Marcos Jr. has close ties to China and he has publicly said he will seek some sort of alignment with China. Reuters, in its news story that cited Marco's interview with a Philippine radio station, reported he would see a bilateral agreement with China.
"If you let the U.S. come in, you make China your enemy," Reuters quoted Marcos from his interview with DZRH Radio during his campaign. "I think we can come to an agreement (with China). As a matter of fact, people from the Chinese embassy are my friends. We have been talking about that."
On May 11, CNN reported that Marcos Jr.'s success is due to "the culmination of a decades-long attempt to rebrand the Marcos family's name and image, most recently through social media."
In his own statements, Marcos, who during his campaign ran on his family legacy and the slogan "rise again," asked that he be judged by his own actions, not his family's past, according to a statement issued by his chief of staff and spokesperson Victor Rodriguez. Rodriguez's statement was widely reported, including by The Manila Times.
"Bongbong looks forward to working across the Philippines, and with international partners and organizations, to address critical issues facing the country, and to begin delivering for the Filipino people," the statement said.
