The urgent concern voiced by the Philippines’ red fighters about the spectre of an intensifying US-China security competition in the region is well captured by the proverb “when elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers.” The outlawed Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA) insurgent forces are avowed Maoist internationalists, however, they are also hardliners when it comes to matters of national sovereignty and self-determination.