Southeast Asian summit opens, overshadowed by Duterte flap
Leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) applaud after posing for a group photo at National Convention Center in Vientiane, Laos, Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2016. Leaders from left, Myanmar’s State Counsellor and Foreign Minister Aung San Suu Kyi, Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, Vietnam’s President Tran Dai Quang, Laos Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith, Philippine’s President Rodrigo Duterte, Brunei Foreign Minister and Prime Minister Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo and Malaysia’s Prime Minister Najib Razak. (AP Photo/Gemunu Amarasinghe)
VIENTIANE, Laos — A summit of Southeast Asian leaders has opened, overshadowed by the Philippine leader’s intemperate comments aimed at President Barack Obama.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte occupied center stage on the eve of the summit when he made comments Monday about Obama that included a “son of a b****” remark.
He was again in the spotlight Tuesday when he trooped into a conference hall in the Laotian capital of Vientiane wearing a traditional Filipino shirt with sleeves rolled up. The other leaders were dressed in dark business suits.
Duterte rolled his sleeves down when the Laotian president gave his speech to open the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit.
READ: Duterte expresses regret over Obama profane comment
Obama, who arrived in Vientiane on Monday night, will attend a summit Thursday between leaders from ASEAN and countries including China and Russia.
READ: Duterte affirms ties with US, ‘deep regard’ for Obama—DFA
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