By Myris Lee
President Rodrigo Duterte announced that he will not attend the summit of leaders of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries to be hosted next month by United States (US) President Joe Biden.
The summit is set on May 12 to 13, 2022, three days after the May 9 elections in the country.
In his Talk to the people aired early Wednesday morning, Duterte, whose six-year term will end in June, said that he declined the invitation in respect to the next administration
“Filipinos will elect a new president on May 9, and I might take a stand that will not be acceptable to the next administration,” he said.
The ASEAN meeting was originally set last March, but was rescheduled due to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, as well as nations’ leaders conflicting schedules.
The agenda of the meet is to continuously show Biden’s commitment to reach out to Southeast Asia since the first US-ASEAN meet last 2021.
Last year, President Duterte also declined the Jakarta-ASEAN meet invitation due to the face-to-face requirements amid the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic. – ag
