U.S. President Barack Obama boards Air Force One to depart at the conclusion of his participation in the ASEAN Summits, from Wattay International Airport in Vientiane, Laos September 8, 2016.
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When asked if he cared to defend his legacy, Obama said of Trump: “I don’t think the guy’s qualified to be president of the United States”.
SHANGHAI Chinese Premier Li Keqiang told Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte he hopes the two countries can work together to bring bilateral ties back to a normal track, the Chinese foreign ministry said in a statement posted on its website on Friday.
The whole room was silent and he waited for Mr Obama to respond but he remained quiet, Mr Duterte said. “I think it seems to be just a habit, a way of speaking for him”, he said.
Obama believes that the press needs to ask further questions to Trump on ideas that are contradictory or “wacky”.
Obama’s remarks came at the end of a grueling nine-day trip that took the him to Laos and China following US stops in Nevada, Hawaii and Midway Atoll in the Pacific Ocean.
Contrary to a news release from the Malacañan Palace that he might be seated between United States President Barack Obama and United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, President Rodrigo Duterte instead sat beside Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and Indonesian President Joko Widodo.
“I realize this raises tensions”, Obama said earlier as he met with ASEAN leader, referring to a recent worldwide arbitration ruling against China on the maritime dispute.
On his last day Obama also visited a century-old Buddhist temple in Laos, talked to youngsters and attended the 11th East Asia Summit in the capital, Vientiane. Obama’s push to ratify the Trans-Pacific Partnership and funding to combat the Zika virus are also expected to be on the agenda.
Obama is wrapping up a meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Laos. “More people will be killed, plenty will be killed until the last pusher is out of the streets”, Duterte said on Monday.
The two did end up shaking hands during a brief interaction on the summit’s sidelines.
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“I realize this raises tensions”, Obama said earlier as he met with ASEAN leaders, referring to a recent global arbitration ruling against China on the maritime dispute. He has said he is charting a foreign policy not dependent on the US, and has moved to reduce tensions with China over rival territorial claims. That deal awaits ratification in the US Congress, where there is opposition from both parties.
