Barack Obama met briefly with Philippine leader Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday, their two governments said, days after the firebrand politician branded the USA president a “son of a whore”.
Advertisement
The American administration has been vocal in recent weeks about the policies of the new Philippine leader in his nationwide crackdown on the narcotics industry.
Earlier this week, Cayetano said that he had written an open letter to Obama appealing for the United States government to help the Philippine government pursue an independent foreign policy.
Duterte sparked a storm on the eve of an Asian summit this week by labelling Obama a “son of a whore”, prompting the U.S. president to cancel a planned meeting.
Duterte also thanked China for its help in the Philippines’ war against illicit drugs.
Asked for his views on the diplomatic furor – which at one point saw Obama cancel a meeting with Duterte after the Filipino leader referred to him as a “son of a whore” – Pacquiao’s position was clear.
“I do not have any master except the Filipino people, nobody but nobody”.
Speaking to the media to brief them about his discussions on Friday (9 September) with Widodo, Duterte said that if Indonesian forces are chasing pirates and they enter Philippine waters, “they can go ahead and blast them off. We interpret our obligations to continue to build on a long standing alliance that we have with the Philippines”.
On Thursday, Duterte did not show up a summit of Asian leaders and Obama, leading to speculation among reporters that he might have been trying to avoid the awkwardness and judgment of his fellow leaders for his undiplomatic remarks.
“More people will be killed, plenty will be killed until the last pusher is out of the streets”, Duterte said on Monday.
His outburst was prompted by US assertions that Obama planned to raise the issue of Duterte’s war on crime that has claimed 3,000 lives in just over two months.
Duterte favours a “soft landing” for the issue and said on Saturday it would be counterproductive for his militarily weak nation, which hosts small units of USA forces, to confront China or undertake actions that could lead to armed conflict. And then he had to work here in Laos in bilateral meetings. “I am the president of the Philippines, not the republic of the global community”.
“I think I’ve already offered my opinion”, Obama said.
Advertisement
Multiple news outlets in Philippines reported that Duterte’s daughter had recently suffered a miscarriage.
