US President Donald Trump. AFP
If US President Donald Trump had his way, President Rodrigo Duterte would be his guest at the White House before November, according to Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana.
Lorenzana said Trump wanted to meet Mr. Duterte before the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) leader’s summit in November.
“It’s still not sure if it’s going to push through because the President (Mr. Duterte) said he will think about it because he is busy,” Lorenzana said.
“But let’s see how things develop from now until maybe early October or late October because what President Trump wants is for him (Mr. Duterte) to go there before the Asean summit in November,” he said.
On April 29, Trump invited the Philippine leader to visit Washington in a “friendly call” at the close of the 30th Asean summit in Manila.
A White House statement said Trump wanted Mr. Duterte to visit Washington so the two leaders could discuss the importance of the US-Philippines alliance.
But on May 1, President Duterte said he could not commit to Trump because of his busy schedule, which includes a planned trip to Russia.