Duterte hits out at US military pact
PHILIPPINES/JAPAN: Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte lashed out anew at the United States yesterday and said it could forget a bilateral defence deal if he stayed in power long enough, in the latest jarring statement from Manila about the future of the alliance.
Duterte delivered his new broadside as he was about to board a plane for an official visit to fellow US ally Japan, a big investor in the Philippines that is becoming nervous about its apparent pivot towards rival power China.
The volatile, crime-busting Duterte had on the eve of the visit softened his remarks last week about a ‘‘separation’’ from Washington, telling Japanese media he was not planning to change alliances and was only seeking to build trade and commerce with China.
But he pulled no punches yesterday when he said he hated having foreign troops in the Philippines and told the United States not to treat his country ‘‘like a dog with a leash’’.
Commenting on a visit to Manila on Tuesday by Daniel Russel, an Assistant Secretary of State, Duterte said Washington should forget about an Enhanced Defence Co-operation Agreement (EDCA) with the Philippines if he were to stay in charge longer.
‘‘You have the EDCA, well forget it. If I stay here long enough,’’ he said. ‘‘I do not want to see any military man of any other nation except the Filipino. That’s the only thing I want.’’
He did not elaborate on what staying longer meant. In the Philippines, a president is allowed only one six-year term in office.
The remarks were another perplexing swing from Duterte, who last week announced in China his ‘‘separation’’ from the United States, before assuring that ties were not being severed and he was merely pursuing an independent foreign policy.
US State Department spokesman John Kirby said Duterte’s remarks were ‘‘inexplicably at odds’’ with the relationship the two countries continued to enjoy and Washington was going to ‘‘take the long view’’ on ties with Manila.
‘‘We’ve seen this rhetoric and then we’ve seen it walked back,’’ he told a regular news briefing. ‘‘We’re not going to react and respond to every bit of rhetoric. We’re going to continue to work at this relationship.’’
Kirby said the United States would continue to meet its obligations in its defence treaty with the Philippines and had not seen Duterte’s comments against it translate into policy.
‘‘The long view in our mind is a sustained, healthy, vibrant, bilateral relationship with the people and the government of the Philippines. That’s what we’ve had for 70-odd years and that’s what we expect to have for 70-plus more years ... so that’s where our focus is on,’’ he said.
Duterte’s latest swipe at Washington could rattle Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who wants to keep ties with the Philippines tight. Abe is to hold rare one-onone talks with Duterte at his residence in Tokyo. - Reuters