A news segment from 2017 on Russia’s weapon donation to the Philippine government was reposted on TikTok on Feb. 25 amid the outbreak of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, implying the Philippines and Russia are current allies in the ongoing war.
Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said on Feb. 25 that the Philippines will avoid taking sides in the ongoing Ukraine-Russia conflict, saying “neutral muna tayo ngayon (we will be neutral for now)”.
The clip details Russia’s turnover of Kalashnikov rifles, helmets, ammunition and trucks to the Philippine military on Oct. 25 2017, with President Rodrigo Duterte personally attending the ceremony.
The ceremony was held a day after the two countries signed two military agreements: a defense agreement and a sales contract with a Russia-owned defense gear supplier. Lorenzana, who inked the defense pact with Russian defense minister Sergey Shoygu, said the donated military equipment would be used by the Philippine army to “fight terrorism.”
User @ronaldgaudence27 reshared the clip from 24 Oras and captioned the TikTok with:
Philippines and Russia are allies.💯 #NATO #ukraine #ww3 #DuterteAdmin
As of Feb. 27, the video has over 2 million views, more than 187,000 likes and nearly 4000 comments. (LBA)