Obama, Duterte meet despite Filipino leader’s crude language

Philippine Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay says President Barack Obama has met briefly with new Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on the sidelines of a summit in Laos. Obama’s term is soon coming to an end, and Duterte is hard to read. And true enough, Duterte’s main message for the USA leader on Monday seemed to be that the Philippines wouldn’t put up with any criticism, from the United States or any foreign power.

The Summit comes at a time when China is flexing its muscle to tighten its grip over the disputed South China Sea (SCS).

Asked about Duterte’s comments, U.S. Secretary of Defense Ash Carter said the defence relationship with the Philippines was a “strong” and “longstanding” one.

“I am a president of a sovereign state and we have long ceased to be a colony”. He sought to address worries that United States’ new focus on Asia will leave smaller nations as pawns in a chess match between the US and China.

Despite these claims, images from the dinner quickly revealed that Duterte was not, in fact, seated next to Obama or Ban.

But the administration has more to worry about than the political impact of Duterte’s diatribe.

Obama, the first president to set foot in Laos while in office, lamented that many Americans remain unaware of the “painful legacy” left behind by a bombardment that claims lives and limbs to this day.

“What we would need is to explain better what the objectives of the policies of government are” to avoid misunderstandings “that can lead to a different picture of what the government is trying to do”, he said.

The new leader of the Philippines seemed to be advising Washington not to challenge him over extrajudicial killings.

When Duterte walked up the stage and bowed deeply before her and others, Olarte said her heart melted. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak pointed out that Malaysia holds the stand that issues concerning security in the South China Sea must be tackled through negotiations and that everyone should not take any action that could cause tension in the maritime region.

The outreach is a core element of his attempt to shift USA diplomatic and military resources away from the Middle East and into Asia in order to counter China in the region and ensure a US foothold in growing markets.

The case, which pre-dates the current administration in Manila, was seen as a turning point in the South China Sea controversy – but Duterte’s unilateral approach could water down its impact.

Duterte had stressed that the United Nations should not intervene in his drug war and should focus on other disturbing issues in other countries.

Duterte has been defiant toward worldwide criticism of his anti-drug campaign, which has left about 2,400 dead in the two months since he took office.

The United States is also interested in ensuring that the current dispute does not harm anti-terror cooperation with the Philippines set up to hunt Al-Qaeda linked groups after the September 11 attacks in 2001 has been scaled back. Again, the Philippine president later said he was only joking, but this week, Duterte said he would not meet with the United Nations secretary general at the ASEAN summit as he had “no time”.

Relations were severely strained under Duterte’s predecessor because of the conflict.