Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday told US President Barack Obama to “go to hell” and said the US had refused to sell some weapons to his country, but he did not care, because Russia and China were willing suppliers.
In his latest salvo, Duterte said he was realigning his foreign policy, because the US had failed the Philippines, adding that, at some point: “I will break up with America.”
It was not clear what he meant by “break up.”
Photo: AFP
During three tangential and fiercely worded speeches in Manila, Duterte said the US did not want to sell missiles and other weapons, but Russia and China had told him they could provide them easily.
“Although it may sound shit to you, it is my sacred duty to keep the integrity of this republic and the people healthy,” Duterte said.
“If you don’t want to sell arms, I’ll go to Russia. I sent the generals to Russia and Russia said: ‘Do not worry, we have everything you need, we’ll give it to you,’” he said. “And as for China, they said: ‘Just come over and sign and everything will be delivered.’”
His comments were the latest in a near-daily barrage of hostility toward the US, during which Duterte has started to contrast the former colonial power with its geopolitical rivals Russia and China.
In Washington, US officials downplayed Duterte’s comments, saying they were “at odds” with the two countries’ warm relationship and decades-long alliance.
White House spokesman Josh Earnest said there has been no communication from the Philippines about making changes in that relationship.
However, Earnest did not back down from criticism of Duterte’s tactics in his deadly war on drugs.
“Even as we protect the strong alliance, the administration and the United States of America will not hesitate to raise our concerns about extrajudicial killings,” he said at a briefing.
On Sunday, Duterte said he had received support from Russia and China when he complained to them about the US.
He also said he would review the US-Philippines Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement.
The deal, signed in 2014, grants US troops some access to Philippine bases, and allows them to set up storage facilities for maritime security and humanitarian and disaster response operations.
Duterte said the US should have supported the Philippines in tackling its chronic drug problems, but instead it had criticized him for the high death toll, as did the EU.
“Instead of helping us, the first to hit was the State Department. So you can go to hell, Mr Obama, you can go to hell,” he said.
“EU, better choose purgatory. Hell is full already. Why should I be afraid of you?” he added.
At a later speech, he said he was emotional, because the US had not been a friend of the Philippines since his election in May.
“They just ... reprimand another president in front of the international community,” he told the Jewish community at a synagogue. “This is what happens now, I will be reconfiguring my foreign policy. Eventually, I might in my time I will break up with America.”
It was not clear if by his “time,” he was referring to his six-year term in office.
According to some US officials, Washington has been doing its best to ignore Duterte’s rhetoric and not provide him with a pretext for more outbursts.
While an open break with Manila would create problems in a region where China’s influence has grown, there were no serious discussions about taking punitive steps, such as cutting aid to the Philippines, two US officials said on Monday.
Several of Duterte’s allies on Monday suggested that he act more like a statesman, because his comments had created a stir.
On Tuesday, Duterte said his outbursts were provoked by criticism of his crackdown on drugs.
“When you are already at the receiving end of an uncontrollable rush, the only way out is to insult,” he said. “That is my retaliation.”
CONFRONTATION: The water cannon attack was the second this month on the Philippine supply boat ‘Unaizah May 4,’ after an incident on March 5 The China Coast Guard yesterday morning blocked a Philippine supply vessel and damaged it with water cannons near a reef off the Southeast Asian country, the Philippines said. The Philippine military released video of what it said was a nearly hour-long attack off the Second Thomas Shoal (Renai Shoal, 仁愛暗沙) in the contested South China Sea, where Chinese ships have unleashed water cannons and collided with Philippine vessels in similar standoffs in the past few months. The China Coast Guard and other vessels “once again harassed, blocked, deployed water cannons, and executed dangerous maneuvers” against a routine rotation and resupply mission to
GLOBAL COMBAT AIR PROGRAM: The potential purchasers would be limited to the 15 nations with which Tokyo has signed defense partnership and equipment transfer deals Japan’s Cabinet yesterday approved a plan to sell future next-generation fighter jets that it is developing with the UK and Italy to other nations, in the latest move away from the country’s post-World War II pacifist principles. The contentious decision to allow international arms sales is expected to help secure Japan’s role in the joint fighter jet project, and is part of a move to build up the Japanese arms industry and bolster its role in global security. The Cabinet also endorsed a revision to Japan’s arms equipment and technology transfer guidelines to allow coproduced lethal weapons to be sold to nations
Thousands of devotees, some in a state of trance, gathered at a Buddhist temple on the outskirts of Bangkok renowned for sacred tattoos known as Sak Yant, paying their respects to a revered monk who mastered the practice and seeking purification. The gathering at Wat Bang Phra Buddhist temple is part of a Thai Wai Khru ritual in which devotees pay homage to Luang Phor Pern, the temple’s formal abbot, who died in 2002. He had a reputation for refining and popularizing the temple’s Sak Yant tattoo style. The idea that tattoos confer magical powers has existed in many parts of Asia
ON ALERT: A Russian cruise missile crossed into Polish airspace for about 40 seconds, the Polish military said, adding that it is constantly monitoring the war to protect its airspace Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, and the western region of Lviv early yesterday came under a “massive” Russian air attack, officials said, while a Russian cruise missile breached Polish airspace, the Polish military said. Russia and Ukraine have been engaged in a series of deadly aerial attacks, with yesterday’s strikes coming a day after the Russian military said it had seized the Ukrainian village of Ivanivske, west of Bakhmut. A militant attack on a Moscow concert hall on Friday that killed at least 133 people also became a new flash point between the two archrivals. “Explosions in the capital. Air defense is working. Do not