A top State Department official met Thursday with Philippine President-elect Ferdinand Marcos Jr. In Manila, part of an ongoing diplomatic outreach in the Asia-Pacific region by Washington to try and blunt growing Chinese influence.
Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman tweeted after meeting Marcos that the two discussed a range of issues, including the Philippines-U.S. Alliance, deepening economic ties, advancing human rights and “preserving a free and open Indo-Pacific.”
Marcos, the son of longtime Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr. Who was ousted in a popular uprising in 1986, was elected in a landslide last month, alarming human rights activists and pro-democracy groups.
The U.S. Appears prepared to work with him, with President Joe Biden being one of the first world leaders to call Marcos and congratulate him on his electoral victory.