The League of Filipino Students (LFS) at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines strongly condemned the proposed trade agreement between the Philippines and Zionist Israel. The group said this agreement contradicts the solidarity of the Filipino people with oppressed peoples worldwide, especially the Palestinian people.
Israeli and Philippine economic officials said they expect to finalize the proposed agreement by the end of the year, which will cover trade in agriculture and fisheries.
Engaging in a trade relationship with a state actively committing genocide is not only immoral but also complicit, according to LFS-PUP. They rejected any agreement that supports widespread killing, displacement, and imperialist interests.
The Philippines-Zionist Israel fascist relationship has long prevailed. In fact, next to the US, Israel ranks as one of the largest suppliers of weapons and defense systems to the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
Military ties between the two deepened during the Duterte regime, when the reactionary state purchased thousands of small and large drones, tanks, military vehicles, missiles, and attack ships worth billions of pesos. The Philippines also bought extensive surveillance systems similar to those Israel uses against Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.
Israel serves as a US instrument in its Middle East wars and as a weapons hub in the region. Its arms industries is part of the broad military-industrial complex of the largest US arms companies.
