EDITORIAL - Shunning aid

In another moment of pique, President Duterte recently announced that the Philippines would shun loans and grants from the 18 countries that sponsored and supported a resolution seeking a review of his campaign against illegal drugs.

Not surprisingly, the Department of National Defense was among the first to voice caution over the move. Among the countries that supported the resolution sponsored by Iceland and co-sponsored by France is Australia, with which the Philippines has a defense cooperation agreement, and which is one of the country’s largest sources of official development assistance. DND Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said his department might seek an exemption from the aid ban in the name of national security.

Australia, which shared intelligence and provided two AP-3C Orion military spy planes to the Armed Forces of the Philippines during the Maute-led siege of Marawi, has a Status of Visiting Forces Agreement with the Philippines and is in talks with the defense department for the provision of other military equipment. It is also one of the Philippines’ major trading partners. The AFP remains in need of a capability upgrade, and this is one area where the country under the current administration cannot rely heavily on its preferred partner China.

Malacañang has since clarified that what has been frozen is mainly the negotiation for new loans and grants from the countries behind the Iceland-led resolution. There will be no cancellation or suspension of deals that are already in place.

Among the negotiations affected are those with France and Germany, which are also major sources of ODA for the Philippines. The United Kingdom, which also backed the resolution, has been one of the biggest supporters of the peace process in Mindanao.

The world has become interdependent, with some countries more in need of outside help than others. While the Duterte administration can tell the world to keep its nose out of Philippine internal affairs, the impact of interactions with the international community must be carefully weighed.