Tension is escalating between Washington and Manila after recently elected Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte announced what he described as a “separation” from the United States and realignment with Beijing.

President Rodrigo Duterte: “America has lost me. And I realign myself in your ideological flow, and maybe I will also go to Russia to talk to Putin and tell him that there are three of us against the world: China, Philippines and Russia. It’s the only way.”

The Philippines is a former U.S. colony and a longtime military ally. Meanwhile in other news from the Philippines, dozens of protesters were injured during a demonstration Wednesday outside the U.S. Embassy in Manila when a police van repeatedly rammed into the crowd. The protesters were calling for an end to the U.S. military presence in the Philippines.