“They met at the holding room and they were the last persons to leave the holding room”, he said.
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“I was afraid this morning when I heard the news that President Obama canceled the meeting with President Duterte [ that] you may also cancel the turnover of equipment”, Mr. dela Rosa joked at the handover ceremony in Manila.
In a terse statement, the White House said only that “Obama had a brief discussion with President Duterte before the ASEAN Gala Dinner in the leaders’ hold space”.
“They exchanged pleasantries”, added officials of the Obama Adminstration.
On the absence of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte at the Asean-US Summit, Najib said he did not ask about it, but he believed that Duterte might have skipped the summit as it would be awkward and uncomfortable for him to face Obama after the controversial incident involving the two leaders.
“I’m very happy that it happened”.
Despite U.S. dismay over Duterte’s remarks, current and former U.S. officials played down the impact, saying they did not expect any serious damage to ties at a time of high tensions over China’s extensive territorial claims in Asia.
China’s ambassador also said Beijing would like to invest in a number of infrastructure projects that have been launched by President Rodrigo Duterte’s administration, the newspaper reported on Monday, citing Philippines Finance Undersecretary Maria Editha Tan.
“You must be respectful”, Duterte said, after a reporter asked him how he might respond to criticism from Obama about his approach to combating crime. In a joint statement issued by leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, members were expected to issue a mild rebuke to China without referencing it by name.
The meeting was “very warm and friendly”, they said.
On the day he was sworn into office, June 30, Mr. Duterte urged people living in a Manila slum to kill drug addicts in their community.
“When and if we have a meeting this is something that will be brought up”, Obama guaranteed. “Putang ina, I will swear at you in that forum”, he said, using the Tagalog phrase for “son of a b – – – -“.
“Obviously the Filipino people are some of our closest friends and allies and the Philippines is a treaty ally of ours”.
There was no immediate confirmation from the White House regarding the meeting.
This has led United Nations secretary general Ban Ki-moon to condemn Duterte for his apparent support for extrajudicial killings, saying they were “illegal and a breach of human rights”.
But an alliance with the Philippines means overlooking its leader’s abuses, something Washington may come to regret as more people fall victim to Duterte’s agenda.
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Duterte, in his usual colorful language punctuated with “son of a …”, had warned in a media briefing that Obama better not question his war against drugs.
