President Rodrigo Duterte declared on Monday he would visit Russia and China this year to tackle an independent foreign policy and “open alliances” with two powers with historic rivalries with the United States.
Earlier, Duterte said “I am about to cross the Rubicon between me and the U.S.,” and the Philippines was at the “point of no return” in relations with former colonial ruler the US, so he wanted to strengthen ties with others, and picked two global powers that have been sparring with Washington on the international political stage.
“I am ready to not really break (U.S.) ties but we will open alliances with China and… Medvedev,” Duterte told reporters, adding he would open up the “other side of the ideological barrier”.
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