Philippine defense chief says Duterte may be 'misinformed' on U.S. alliance | Reuters: The Philippine defense minister sought to patch up cracks in a military alliance with the United States on Wednesday, saying President Rodrigo Duterte, who has appeared intent on scrapping joint programs, might be misinformed about their value.
Referring to recent strongly worded comments by Duterte, in which he has declared that the Philippines military gained little from U.S. security ties, Defence Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said the armed forces were still weak and the country got a lot out of the U.S. relationship.
"That's why I said the president was misinformed, because I think the information he is getting is incomplete," Lorenzana told reporters, a day after the launch of the latest round of PHIBLEX military exercises involving troops from both sides.
"Maybe, the defense ministry and the armed forces were remiss in providing him the correct information. This, we will address in the coming days."
