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President Obama is told that Duterte has a few choice words for him.
“We inherited this problem from the United States”, said Duterte.
The Philippines has for years been an ally of the United States in Southeast Asia, a very sensitive zone for Washington and an area that it takes care a lot, especially for the presence of China.
“We believe that bigger nations should not dictate to smaller nations and that all nations should play by the same rules”, he said.
“They first need to understand the problems that my country faces before they talk about human rights”, said Détente before he continued with making an infamous comment about the U.S. president.
The White House announced later on Monday that there will be no meeting.
As he opened a day of ceremony and diplomacy, Obama was greeted by a military band, traditional dancers and a warm, tropical rain. “We are sorry that the comments were seen as a personal attack on the United States president”, the press secretary of the Philippine president said.
Leaders of Japan, South Korea, Australia, India, New Zealand and Russian Federation will also be in Vientiane.
Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte is expressing regret after his obscenity-laden rant against President Barack Obama prompted the White House to cancel planned bilateral talks between the two leaders.
President Duterte, on Tuesday in Manila expressed remorse and regrets that his remarks to the press had caused much controversy.
The comments came after a journalist asked Duterte how he would explain the Philippines’s use of extrajudicial killings.
On the economic front, Abella disclosed that Vietnam was encouraging that “the Philippines can go to Vietnam and invest more, have more trade and that they also made a long-term commitment regarding rice”.
North Korea fired three ballistic missiles off its east coast Monday.
On Tuesday, Duterte met the leaders of Singapore, Japan and Vietnam.
The Obama administration has worked to build a partnership with the Philippines, a former colony, in part to counter balance China and its territorial claims in the South China Sea.
“I would not expect a formal bilateral meeting, but I think we’ll have an opportunity to interact with him, as with all leaders”, U.S. Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes told reporters on Tuesday.
Obama added that the US had not closed off the possibility for dialogue with North Korea, if it were to change course.
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“We have to be very vigilant in sanctions enforcement and we have to maintain the sense of urgency among the global community”, Rhodes said.
