(Eagle News)–President Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday, Sept. 4, said the Philippines will source intelligence-gathering equipment only from Israel, this despite a sales pitch from America.
The President made the statement during his meeting with Israeli President Reuven Rivlin in Jerusalem.
The President is on a four-day official visit to Israel.
“That is my order specifically, Israel,” Duterte said, noting that the same equipment from Israel helped the Philippines win against the local terrorists who overran Marawi in May 2017.
The President, however, did not dismiss outright America’s gesture, calling it a “good friend.”
“I do not see any reason that there would be a problem in our relationship,” he said of Israel, noting that the two countries were “too far away” from each other.
“And you can be sure that the Philippines will remain loyal to the tenets of democracy and the right of a nation to exist peacefully,” he said.
Earlier, three US Cabinet men wrote Duterte a letter, offering the US’ military equipment that included attack helicopters.
But Duterte expressed coolness toward the idea, and noted then-US President Barack Obama’s “humiliation” of him when he criticized the Philippines’ drug war in public.
Duterte has however apologized.