When Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte took office in 2016, he was unequivocal in his assertion that he would look at China from a new lens. It was "time to say goodbye to Washington," he had proclaimed and wanted to grow close to China and Russia.

He may be in the last stretch of his presidency, but Duterte wants to make a reverse turn now and rush the Philippines into U.S. arms.

Visits by top U.S. military and political leadership, the Philippines' supporting the AUKUS defense pace between Australia, the United Kingdom and the U.S., and recent criticism of China by the Philippines all indicate that Duterte has accepted that his country is better having close ties with the U.S.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin'sAustin's visit to the Philippines over three months ago seemed to have tilted the scales. It was during this visit that the Philippines-U.S. Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) signed in 1998 between the two countries was revived. It provides legal cover for thousands of U.S.
troops coming into the Philippines for military exercises, humanitarian missions and others. [https://www.csis.org/analysis/what-philippines-united-states-visiting-forces-agreement-and-why-does-it-matter]

Duterte has been against the arrangement, and in 2020 he had announced that he would terminate it. He had claimed that close relationships with China and Russia were important and shifting away from dependence on the U.S. was vital to improve the Philippines' strategic position. [https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/7/30/duterte-fully-restores-troop-pact-with-united-states] That hasn't happened.
Although China has helped the Philippines with large tranches of covid vaccines, its actions just off the coast have worried Duterte. For instance, China has established military research stations on islands claimed by the Philippines, and it also deployed military aircraft in the area. [https://amti.csis.org/duterte-finally-admits-the-importance-of-the-u-s-alliance/]

The latest flashpoint was when the Philippines accused the Chinese coast guard ships of confronting its supply boats and water-cannoning when approaching a shoal occupied by Filipino marines in the South China Sea. (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/nov/18/chinese-vessels-use-water-cannon-to-block-philippines-vessels-from-disputed-shoal)

Read more:
China and the Philippines:
https://www.military.com/daily-news/2021/11/04/duterte-turns-philippines-toward-us-again-his-term-ends-and-china-policy-sours.html