Duterte, Bahraini king oversee signing of 4 deals

President Duterte and King Hamad at the Sakhir Palace. Christine Avendaño/Philippine Daily Inquirer

MANAMA, Bahrain—Over dishes such as mozzarella-stuffed chicken and pan seared fish with lemon caper sauce, two Filipino songs were among those played in the official dinner feted by His Majesty Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa for visiting President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday night (dawn of Friday in Manila).

Bahrain’s Police Chamber Orchestra played “Ikaw” and “Duterte Para sa Pagbabago” –the inaugural song of the President– during the official dinner, according to Malacañang.

A red carpet welcome ceremony at the royal Palace was given to President Duterte who finally met with King Hamad on day two of his state visit here.

After the brief welcome ceremony, the King welcomed Mr. Duterte inside the sprawling Palace where each side’s delegation were there waiting.

The two leaders proceeded to witness the signing of four agreements between their officials that aimed to better ties between Manila and Manama.

These included an air service agreement that update aviation safety; an agreement that will see Philippine avoidance of double taxation; a deal establishing a joint high commission between Manila and Manama which will now become the venue for discussions of all issues between them and a cooperation agreement between the Foreign Service Institute in Manila and the foreign ministry here that involved training and information-sharing of diplomats from both sides.

The presidential party was served arabica coffee during the signing ceremony.

After the signing of the agreements, King Hamad hosted an official dinner for Mr. Duterte and his delegation that included Acting Foreign Secretary Enrique Manalo, Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon and Press secretary Martin Andanar.

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