Wednesday, October 26, 2016

Philippine Pres.Wants US Troops Out by Two Yrs.; Says Troop Presence Fuels Feuds with Islamic Mil.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said today (October 26, 2016) he wants U.S. troops out of his country within two years, and is willing to scrap defense pacts with longtime ally Washington, according to the AFP (Agence France-Presse) website.

The remarks -- made during a visit to Japan -- follow a series of antit-American tirades by the Philippine leader, including calling President Barack Obama a "son of a whore."

"I want them [U.S. troops] out and if I have to revise or abrogate agreements, executive agreements, I will," Duterte said.

The U.S. has a small number of Special Forces on the southern island of Mindanao to aid counter-terrorism operations. But Duterte said he wants them out of Mindanao because their presence fuels tensions on the island where Islamic militants have waged a decades-long separatist insurgency.

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