PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte admitted that he was on a “tightrope” with the United States and China, saying that while he could not afford to provoke the communist state, the “exigency of the moment” requires the presence of Americans in the Philippines.
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte delivers his speech during the inspection of the newly delivered air assets for the Philippine Air Force at the Haribon Hangar in Clark Air Base, Pampanga on February 12, 2021. SIMEON CELI/ PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO