Philippines’ Duterte signals ‘separation’ from U.S. in China

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte says he wants to cut the cord with the U.S. and pivot to China and Russia, words that signal a deepening split with his country’s biggest military ally and which have prompted bafflement in Washington.

American officials said they would seek an explanation of Duterte’s pronouncement during a state visit to Beijing, several weeks after he told President Barack Obama to “go to hell.” Since taking office in June, the brash 71-year-old leader has repeatedly questioned his nation’s links with the U.S. while touting the economic benefits of closer ties with China.

“I announce my separation from the U.S.,” Duterte said to a packed room of business leaders in the Chinese capital after meeting with President Xi Jinping. Duterte also said he might go to Russian President Vladimir Putin and tell him “there’s three of us against the world.”

The comments marked Duterte’s strongest yet in disparaging an alliance that has underpinned the U.S.’s Asia-Pacific strategy since the Second World War. Yet it remains to be seen whether he will follow through on the heated rhetoric with actions — such as jointly exploring for energy with Beijing in disputed waters or tearing up agreements that give the U.S. access to bases in the Philippines. The U.S. has strong ties with the Philippine defence establishment, and the nation’s citizens say they trust America more than China by a wide margin.

“Symbolically none of this is good for the U.S., but in concrete terms the U.S. has thick skin,” said Malcolm Cook at the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute in Singapore. “If the Duterte government starts to restrict U.S. access to Philippine bases or something like that, then the U.S. will have a problem.”

On Thursday, State Department spokesman John Kirby described the U.S. as “baffled” by Duterte’s rhetoric.