Is the U.S.-Philippines Relationship Spinning Out of Control?

Over the past six months, the U.S.-Philippines relationship has become increasingly strained and, at times, confused, as new Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has made a series of emphatic statements suggesting he wants to downgrade the bilateral relationship. U.S. officials, meanwhile, have struggled to make sense of his comments and to determine whether they accord with actual Philippine policy.

In my new interview with the Cipher Brief, I discuss Duterte’s vision for the Philippines and the future direction of bilateral relations.