How does populist foreign policy facilitate illiberal practices? Philippine policing cooperation with China under Duterte

Can domestic populist practices benefit from a state’s foreign policy? If so, how do populist leaders utilise foreign policy to conform to their popular yet illiberal domestic agendas? This paper examines policing cooperation between China and the Philippines under former President Rodrigo Duterte as a case study to explore how populist foreign policy can shape domestic affairs within a populist regime. Specifically, two concrete examples are analysed: the ‘War on Drugs’ and the ‘Safe Philippines’ project, which can be theorised as anti-drug campaigns and technology-driven governance within the broader framework of policing. Drawing on empirical evidence, this study shows that international support from China contributed to Duterte’s domestic governance not only materially but also ideologically, reflecting a close alignment between the two sides. Based on fieldwork conducted in the Philippines and secondary sources, this study finds that populist leaders can deliberately manage foreign relations and international cooperation to facilitate illiberal practices within their domestic spheres. By arguing that the redirection of foreign policy can enable populist leaders to advance illiberal campaigns through external support from new sponsors, this paper further contributes to the theoretical understanding of the relationship between populism and foreign policy.