Philippine President’s China Trip Puts US Ties to the Test

After lashing out at longtime ally America, the new Philippine president is making a state visit to China in a charm offensive that will help define how far he wants to shift allegiance from treaty ally the U.S. to an Asian superpower locked in a territorial standoff with his small, impoverished country.

It’s a high-stakes gamble for brash President Rodrigo Duterte.

While he recalibrates Philippine relations with the world’s big powers, his country’s 65-year alliance with the United States — a key pillar of President Barack Obama’s rebalance to Asia — hangs in the balance. China will likely move to regain lost ground in a Southeast Asian nation that won a major arbitration lawsuit against Beijing’s massive territorial claims in the South China Sea just three months ago.

Below is a look at some of the issues surrounding Duterte’s four-day visit to China that begins Tuesday and will include meetings with President Xi Jinping and other officials.

Read More- New York Times

Image courtesy of AP