Love songs, laughter and the budding bromance between Trump and Duterte
US President Donald Trump appears to have formed an unlikely bromance with self-proclaimed killer Ro..
US President Donald Trump appears to have formed an unlikely bromance with self-proclaimed killer Rodrigo Duterte.
Mr Trump met the Philippine leader as he comes to the end of his lengthy tour of Asia – and it appears their chemistry is better than that Mr Duterte shared with Barack Obama.
Their mutual appreciation was cemented as Mr Duterte, 72, sang a Filipino love song "on the orders of the commander-in-chief".
He joined an entertainer at a leaders' dinner as she sang Ikaw, which included the lines: "You are the light in my world, a half of this heart of mine."
He told the diners: "I sang uninvited, upon the orders of the commander-in-chief of the United States."
Earlier in the day, Mr Trump laughed as the Philippine leader called the media "spies", while avoiding a question on human rights abuses.
A reporter who asked Trump if he would be raising the issue with the leader was shrugged off by Mr Duterte.
He said: "We would be talking on matters that [are] of interest [to] both the Philippines and [US]. With you around, guys, you are the spies."
Mr Trump said the pair had a "great relationship", praising the host for the summits in Manila.
Mr Duterte, who has previously claimed to have thrown a man from a helicopter, came to power last year with a pledge to tackle the country's drugs problem.
Police have reportedly killed 3,967 people in the crackdown, and are permitted to gun down suspects in the streets.
Another 2,290 people have been murdered in drug-related crimes, while thousands of other deaths remain unsolved, according to government data.
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Mr Obama had been critical of the tactics, leading Mr Duterte to call him the "son of a whore".
But according to Mr Duterte's spokesman, he and Mr Trump have "similar feelings" about Mr Obama
The spokesman added that Mr Trump had been "appreciative" of the president's efforts with his anti-drugs policy, and had not raised any human rights issues. Mr Trump's spokesman said it had been raised "briefly".
Mr Trump called Mr Duterte in April this year to congratulate him on the "unbelievable job" he was doing on drug crime.
