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WASHINGTON DC ? (UPDATE) US President Barack Obama Thursday (early Friday in Manila) announced the appointment of the Philippines as chief coordinator between the United States and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Obama confirmed he would visit ASEAN this year starting with Indonesia.
No mention was made of a stopover in the Philippines which has bolstered views that his meeting with President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was a sort of consolation for the apparent snub.
Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita stressed that Obama gave no indication whether he will include the Philippines or not in his visit to Southeast Asia.
Still, President Arroyo was feeling good following her 30-minute meeting with Obama at the Oval Office as she got praise from the world?s most powerful leader.
Obama said they talked about the peace process in Mindanao, and how Arroyo made good progress in counterterrorism.
"I am very pleased that President Arroyo has made such good progress on dealing with counterterrorism issues," Obama said.
"She has initiated a peace process in Mindanao that we think has the potential to bring peace and stability to a part of the Philippines that has been wracked by unrest for too long," he said.
The Philippine government plans to hold talks next week with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), which has been waging a bloody rebellion since 1978 on the southern island of Mindanao.
Arroyo thanked the United States for its years of assistance to help the Philippines fight Muslim militants.
She also hailed Obama for reaching out to the Islamic world.
"We welcome President Obama's reaching out to the Muslim world. And also we are very pleased about the importance that he affords to engagement with our part of the world," she said.
Obama spent part of his childhood in Indonesia, another nation his administration has identified for stronger ties.
Holding his first White House summit with a Southeast Asian leader, Obama hailed the long-standing US alliance with the Philippines on a range of issues including pressing Myanmar on democracy.
"Although the Philippines is not the largest of countries, it?using a phrase from boxing?punches above its weight in the international arena," Obama said.
The Philippines has been among the most vocal Southeast Asian nations in pressuring the military regime Myanmar, earlier known as Burma, where a court on Friday is set to hand a verdict to democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi.
"Internationally, we stand foursquare behind the United States on the position it has taken with regard to Burma and with regard to North Korea's nuclear adventurism," Arroyo said.
She also said that she and Obama "connected very well also on our position with regard to Burma and Aung San Suu Kyi."
The Philippine President was accompanied by Executive Secretary Ermita, Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo, House Speaker Prospero Nograles, Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago, and former Senator and now Presidential Adviser on Climate Change Heherson Alvaraez who bumped off Philippine Ambassador to the United States Willy Gaa from the five-man entourage.
The meeting lasted 30 minutes and their joint briefing took another 15 minutes.
Arroyo described Obama as cordial and praised his broad knowledge of issues while Obama complimented her about her good grasp of issues they discussed.
Arroyo earlier met with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and was also due to meet business leaders. With a report from Agence France-Presse
