President Duterte Meets Russian President Vladimir Putin At Kremlin Before Flying Back To Philippines
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte met with Russian
President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin before flying back to Manila at 1:38
a.m. Wednesday (6:38 a.m., Manila time).
The meeting took place around 10 p.m. on May 23 here (around
3 a.m. of May 24, Manila time).
President Putin returned to Moscow Tuesday evening to meet President
Duterte, who cut short his visit because of the situation in Marawi City.
The President explained to President Putin the reason for
his abrupt departure.
President Putin, in turn, condoled with President Duterte
for the Marawi attack and hoped that it would be resolved with minimum losses.
“I have to express our condolences... my colleagues and
myself definitely understand quite well that you do have to return to your
motherland,” President Putin said, according to a transcript of the meeting
handed to media covering here.
The Chief Executive arrived in Moscow past 11p.m. Monday
here (past 4 a.m. Tuesday, May 23, Manila time).
President Duterte is supposed to hold a bilateral meeting
with Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, receive his honorary doctorate
degree from Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO
University), and witness the signing of various agreements between the two
countries.
His visit here also include meeting with the business and
Filipino communities in Russia.
“I have spoken to my counterpart here in Moscow and have
explained the situation, and they understand that the security of the Filipino
people especially in Marawi and the whole Mindanao is a priority,” Department
of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano said in a briefing.
“They understand that the presence of President Duterte is
essential in the Philippines but I will be staying behind. The agreements will
be signed and we will have a bilateral meeting with the Honorable Minister of
Foreign Affairs (Sergey) Lavrov,” Secretary Cayetano added.
He noted that the President does not “take lightly the
declaration of martial law” as this will have implications, particularly in
tourism, in the southern Philippines.
“The mere declaration of martial law would dissuade some
from going to Mindanao at this point in time,” the top diplomat said.
The President is expected to arrive in the Philippines at
around 4:30 p.m. (Manila time).
President Duterte Meets Russian President Vladimir Putin At Kremlin Before Flying Back To Philippines
Reviewed by Yen
on
May 24, 2017
Rating:
Post a Comment