Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte sought to reassure neighbors and allies Wednesday after his apparent cozying-up to China.
He insisted that his state visit to Beijing a week ago was focused on trade, not security and also warned that he would not be a “doormat” for the international community.
In a speech to business leaders Philippines Economic Forum in Tokyo during an an official visit to Japan, he said: “You know, I went to China for a visit, and I would like to assure you that all there was, was economics. We did not talk about arms, we did not talk about stationing of troops… We avoided talking about alliances, military or otherwise. What happened there was just a few platforms where investments could come in.”
He said that the country was “mandated” by its constitution “to adopt an independent foreign policy.”
During the speech, which began by praising Japanese-Filipino bilateral ties, he quickly pivoted to oft-visited topics, including his support for his country’s bloody war on drugs and his perceived victimization by the international community.
“If you chastise me, reprimand me before the international crowd and you say: ‘Mr. Duterte, you stop the killings there… stop it because we will withhold aid and assistance to your country’ — it’s like saying, ‘I am a dog on a leash, and if you do not stop biting the criminals, we will not throw the bread right under your mouth, we will throw it further so you’ll have to struggle to get it.’
“That’s what America wants me to be, a dog barking for the crumbs of their favor.”
Grudges old and new
Duterte had reignited his war of words with the United States on Tuesday, bringing up old grudges and throwing in some new musings on American influence in his country and the region.
A speech at the airport in Manila just before he departed for Japan echoed comments he made a week ago in Beijing, in which he pronounced the end of his country’s relationship with the United States, saying “America has lost.”
US Assistant Secretary for East Asian Affairs Danny Russel visited Manila last weekend to meet with Filipino officials, including the foreign and defense ministers, in an attempt to gain clarity on Duterte’s Beijing comments, after they caused “consternation” in the United States.
Filipino Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay and Presidential Spokesman Ernesto Abella both reiterated on Monday that all treaties and agreements will still be honored.
Secretary of State John Kerry also spoke to Yasay, and State Department spokesman John Kirby said that Duterte’s remarks were “inexplicably at odds with this relationship that (the United States and the Philippines) continue to enjoy.”
Officials say there have been no instructions for any tangible application of the remarks by Duterte. “This was not very well thought out, but it doesn’t seem to have very deep roots either,” a US official told CNN.
Signals end of military cooperation
On Tuesday he also held forth on the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement with the United States (ECDA), which he has previously suggested he will disregard, starting with the end to joint military drills.
“I do not want to see any military man of any other nation (in the Philippines), except the Filipino soldier,” he said.
The agreement was signed in by Duterte’s predecessor, Nonoy Aquino, by executive order and could be rescinded by Duterte, but would likely face opposition in the country’s Senate.
Russel said the United States has “every intention of continuing to meet all our security commitments in the mutual defense treaty.”
He returned to the theme in Tokyo, saying that he would, as “a last maneuver,” would “revise or abrogate agreements, executive agreements” to free the Philippines “from the presence of foreign military troops.”
South China Sea ruling
Speaking Monday to CNN affiliate TV Asahi, he said that he had promised Yasay not to speak out any more, but said he had changed his mind after reading the day’s newspapers.
Holding up one paper, he read the headline: “Duterte’s statements cause distress for business.”
“So leave!” he said, adding the Philippines will survive without foreign investors who are squeamish about his bullish rhetoric.
He reiterated his stance Wednesday, saying that he wouldn’t be a “doormat for the international community.
“I may have ruffled the feelings of some but that is how it is. We will survive. It may be a lesser quality of life but we will survive. One thing I want to prove to America is that there is such a thing as the dignity of the Filipino people.”