FFPS: Condemn and counter US imperialist aggression and war in the Philippines!

We hereby share a statement published by the Friends of the Filipino People in Struggle (FFPS).

On February 6, a US military-contracted plane crashed in Mindanao, Philippines, killing four Americans: one US military service member and three defense contractors, unequivocally exposing the active role of the US in the “counterinsurgency” war against the Filipino people and highlighting the involvement of US military personnel and equipments in the war effort.

According to the US Indo-Pacific Command Public Affairs (INDOPACOM), “The aircraft was providing intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance support at the request of our Philippine allies. The incident occurred during a routine mission in support of US-Philippine security cooperation activities.” But there is nothing ‘routine’ about a US military-contracted plane conducting operations in the Philippines. The mere presence of US military forces in the Philippines—especially their involvement in military operations—blatantly violates the Filipino people’s independence, and should be condemned as acts of US imperialist aggression, military intervention and war in the Philippines.

The crash of a US military-contracted plane in the south of the Philippines, further concretizes and proves the indispensable role of the US in the design and implementation of the ongoing “counterinsurgency” war. It underlines the evidence presented to the International People’s Tribunal of 2024 on war crimes in the Philippines, which highlighted the complicity of the US in International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and human rights violations committed against the Filipino people, such as the use of indiscriminate bombings of rural communities, enforced disappearances, extra-judicial killings and many other war crimes.

Throughout his presidency, the US-backed Marcos Jr. administration has proven to be an agent to US imperialism, expanding U.S. military presence in the Philippines. This includes reaffirming the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty, expanding the number of U.S. military bases under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) to nine confirmed sites, increasing joint military exercises and “security collaboration,” as well as boosting military aid—an additional $500 million in 2024 and a proposed $2.5 billion in Foreign Military Financing (FMF) to modernize the AFP [Editor’s note: Armed Forces of Philippines] over five years. This also includes the secret deployment of US Typhon missile systems to an undisclosed location within the country.

While many of these military cooperations are disguised as supposedly efforts to ‘counter’ aggression by China, their real target is the crushing of the Philippine revolutionary movement, ensuring that the Philippines remains a tool in US imperialism’s pursuit of dominance in the Asia-Pacific region. It is the Philippine revolution that forms the main stumbling block to the US fully using the Philippines as its pawn—which is why they seek to destroy it.

The continued and expanded presence and operations of US military forces in the Philippines, and their support and direction to the Marcos Jr. administration and the AFP, and the“counterinsurgency” war, must be condemned and opposed as clear acts of US imperialist aggression, military intervention and war. The US, the AFP, and the GRP [Editor’s note: Government of the Republic of Philippines] are the most fervent enemies of a just and lasting peace in the Philippines.

Internationally, we must expose the ongoing US imperialist war in the Philippines and counter it with all our might.

We call on the international community to join us in demanding an end to US aggression and war in the Philippines. This includes calling for:

The withdrawal of all US military forces.
A stop to all arms sales and military aid to the US-Marcos Government.
An immediate end to the bombings by the US-Marcos regime.
Supporting the Filipino people’s struggle for national liberation

This February marks the 126th anniversary of the Philippine-American war and the start of US imperialist domination in the Philippines.

This month, we call on all members and allies to hold rallies and other protest actions at US embassies, US government buildings and other institutions of US imperialism. Hold fora and community gatherings exposing the role of US imperialism and war in the Philippines. Call on the support of allies to expose to local government officials the Marcos Jr. subservience to US imperialism and demand to support the ending of arms sales and military aid to the Philippines.

End US aggression in the Philippines!
US out of the Philippines!
US out of everywhere!
Stop arms sales and military aid to the Philippines!
We support the Filipino aspiration: National Liberation against US imperialism!
Stop the bombings in the Philippines!
End US-Marcos state terrorism in the Philippines!
Stop aiding Marcos and his fascist pawns!
Militant action against US imperialist war-mongering!
Defend the land, defend life!