With Mattis in Manila, Duterte decides its time to boost ties with Russia and China

  JAKARTA, Indonesia — This week, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis visited the Philippines, one of Washington’s closest military allies in Southeast Asia, as part of a scheduled gathering of international defense chiefs. The trip, however, was overshadowed by public gestures of support — including gifts of weapons — by America’s two main geopolitical rivals to Manila. […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2017/10/27/with-mattis-in-manila-duterte-decides-its-time-to-boost-ties-with-russia-and-china/