Rody welcomes US senator at Malacañang

MANILA, Philippines -  In a sign of improving relations between the Philippines and the United States, President Duterte met with US Sen. Cory Gardner at Malacañang on Wednesday.

Coming from Davao where he holed up the past week since he declared martial law in Mindanao, Duterte received Gardner who paid a courtesy call on him in Manila.

Newly appointed  Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano was present during the call.

US Ambassador Sung Kim accompanied Gardner whose visit came in the wake of the moves by two US senators who filed a legislation last month restricting the export of weapons by the US to the Philippine National Police in response to Duterte’s war on drugs.

Democratic Sen. Ben Cardin and Republican Sen. Marco Rubio filed the bipartisan bill called “The Philippines Human Rights Accountability and Counternarcotics Act of 2017.”

Meanwhile, the US has remained concerned about the developments in Marawi City as a government air strike mistakenly killed 11 soldiers and wounded eight others who were pursuing the Maute extremists.

“Deepest condolences to the families and friends of the victims,” Kim said yesterday in a post on Twitter.

The US condemned on Thursday the violence perpetrated by Islamic State-linked Maute group in southern Philippines. 

White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said these terrorists killed Philippine law enforcement officials and endangered the lives of innocent citizens.  – With Pia Lee-Brago