US reiterates respect for PH

From Malaya Business Insight (Oct 31): US reiterates respect for PH

THE US Embassy in Manila has said it has deep respect for the sovereignty and democracy in the Philippines and “any statement or speculation to the contrary is misguided.”

The statement was issued apparently in response to questions posed by Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano last Friday, asking if the US Embassy was engaged in spying after outgoing Ambassador Philip Goldberg said Cayetano and Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade made an “unpublicized trip” to Beijing in June, apparently to pave the way for President Duterte’s visit.

Cayetano, who was Duterte’s running mate in the May elections, confirmed he went to China but Tugade denied making the trip.

“As a friend and ally of the Philippines, the US respects both the sovereignty and democracy of the Philippines. Those are fundamental and core beliefs and any statement or speculation to the contrary is misguided,’ the embassy said.

The embassy also reiterated the US position that it does not oppose a relationship between the Philippines and China with which the Philippines has a territorial dispute in the South China Sea.

“As President Barack Obama has said many times, we welcome China’s peaceful rise and want it to be a constructive member of the international community,” the embassy said.

President Duterte has been attacking the United States since Goldberg commented on a supposed joke of Duterte about the rape of an Australian missionary, while Duterte was still campaigning to be elected as president months ago.

http://www.malaya.com.ph/business-news/news/us-reiterates-respect-ph