Majority of Filipino people believes the Philippines’ relationship with the United States is more important than its relationship with China, a recent survey of the Social Weather Stations showed.
Seventy-eight percent of 1,800 adults polled from Sept. 27 to 30 said they found Manila’s ties with Washington more important compared to Beijing while 12 percent found the relationship with China more important than the US, the SWS survey said.
Preference for the US was highest in Balance Luzon at 83 percent, followed by Metro Manila at 79 percent, Visayas at 77 percent, and Mindanao at 67 percent.
The survey also revealed that China’s trust rating among Filipinos was ranked “bad,” with 54 percent of Filipinos saying they have “little trust” in China, 21 have “much trust,” and 23 percent were undecided.
On the other hand, the US enjoys an “excellent” trust rating among Filipinos, with 80 percent of respondents saying they have “much trust,” eight percent have “little trust”, and 11 percent were undecided.
In the September survey, the SWS found that those with “little trust” in China value the country’s relationship with the US more.
Majority of Filipinos who have “much trust” in China, or 67 percent, and 53 percent of those with “much trust” in the US, said it is possible for the Philippines to have a good relationship with both China and US at the same time.
Half or 52 percent of those surveyed believe it is possible for the Philippines to have a good relationship with both the US and China at the same time, while 41 percent said otherwise. The remaining seven percent abstained.