Ties between US-Philippines “unbreakable”, new envoy Romualdez says

October 4, 2017

New Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel Romualdez said ties between the Philippines and the United States are “unbreakable”.

Romualdez, who assumes his post in Washington next week, said relations have been nurtured through defense treaty alliance, shared history, culture and common values.

"That kind of alliance is very important for us,” Romualdez told some  journalists Tuesday night. “If we are really to survive as a country we have to have that relationship with the US whether we like it or not and it has been there for many, many years. We can not just remove or ignore it.”

Although President Rodrigo Duterte's shift toward China and his criticisms of the US have raised questions, Romualdez said ties remained steadfast.

Romualdez, 69, a former media executive and columnist, says irritants are temporary.

“Almost all of us have relatives or friends in the United States. We are tied in with the US so It’s hard to break that. It’s something that we can not do at this time and if we do it, it will take more than two generations to do it,” he said.

Romualdez believes the recent conflict in Marawi has altered the dynamics of relationship of Manila and Washington.

“Marawi has played a major role and the Americans have been very helpful,” Romualdez said. DMS