ARS CEO and Founder Julio S. Amador III provided his expert opinion on South China Morning Post's (SCMP) recent article on ASEAN reception of U.S.'s calls to ban Chinese apps (i.e. TikTok, WeChat).
He argued that decisions by the Philippine Government to ban (or not to ban) Chinese apps are solely "based on the country's own strategic calculations." Any and all decisions on the matter by the Duterte administration, according to him, should not be misconstrued as a "snub of Washington or tacit support for Beijing."
The SCMP report can be found here.