The Pilippines leaving U.S. alliance, is a big deal

[procon]

4. Philippines' Duterte says didn't really mean 'separation' from US

This guy is just like Trump, he's shoots his mouth off and then someone with a brain tells him what the consequences will be so he can stammer out some sort of mea culpa.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said on Friday he was not severing ties with his country's long-time ally the United States, but merely pursuing a more independent foreign policy by strengthening relations with China.

A day after he provoked fresh diplomatic alarm by announcing his "separation" from Washington, Duterte struck a more conciliatory tone as he arrived back in the Philippines after a four-day visit to Beijing.

"It is not severance of ties. When you say severance of ties, you cut diplomatic relations. I cannot do that," the Philippine leader told reporters at a midnight news conference in his southern home city of Davao.

"It's in the best interest of my countrymen to maintain that relationship.

http://www.cnbc.com/2016/10/22/philippines-duterte-says-didnt-really-mean-separation-from-us.html