President Duterte might raise the Recto Bank issue at the coming summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Thailand as part of talks on the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea, a ranking foreign affairs official said yesterday.

Contrary to the previous remarks of Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, Malacañang said Chinese Ambassador Zhao Jianhua will not be summoned over the incident in Recto Bank.

Following the sinking of a Filipino boat by a Chinese vessel, the Philippines' top diplomat called on the international community to render assistance to persons in distress at sea.

After more than a week of silence on the issue, President Duterte downplayed the collision as a "little maritime accident."

"Of course not, but we do not know yet if they are fishing there," Panelo said in a press briefing Monday.