Trillanes: I did not try to stop Trump visit

MANILA, Philippines — Confirming that he has met with US government officials, Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV clarified that he did not attempt to stop US President Donald Trump's planned visit to the Philippines.

"To be clear, I did not try to stop the state visit of President Trump since these things are carefully planned and cannot be stopped on the mere say so of a Philippine senator," Trillanes said in a statement.

The White House earlier confirmed that Trump will arrive in Manila on November 12 to attend the special gala celebration dinner for the 50th anniversary of the ASEAN.

The American leader will also attend the US-ASEAN Summit on November 13.

READ: Trump to hold bilateral meeting with Duterte in Manila

Trillanes confirmed that he met with US Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida) to discuss Philippines-US relations, corruption and the human rights situation in the country. Trump was the Republican candidate in the 2016 US presidential elections.

"Unlike the officials of the Duterte administration, I presented only factual information, Besides, you cannot fool the US government; they know what's happening in our country," Trillanes said.

On Thursday, Presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella said that Malacañang is hoping Trillanes would not spread misinformation as he meets with Rubio.

“We do hope the correct information has been given and not biased information designed to adversely affect US-Philippine relations,” Abella said.

Abella, however, refused to comment on rumors that Trillanes went on a trip to the US to prevent Trump from attending the ASEAN Summit in Manila next month.

Trillanes, on the other hand, assured the public that he is pushing for the interests of the country.

"But let me emphasize that the interests of our country are not necessarily the same as the interests of Mr. Duterte," Trillanes said.