US President Barack Obama and Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte have met briefly and exchanged pleasantries, Philippine officials says, after a meeting between the two leaders was cancelled due to the latter's crude comments.
The two leaders were supposed to meet one-on-one on Tuesday on the sidelines of the leaders' summit of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Vientiane, Laos.
However, Obama cancelled the meeting after Duterte warned him and other leaders against questioning his bloody anti-drug campaign with the words "son of a bitch."
On Wednesday, Obama and Duterte shook hands and talked briefly before attending a gala dinner at the summit.
"They met at the holding room. They were the last persons to leave the holding room," Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay said, insisting that the countries' relationship was "firm, very strong."
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A White House official said the exchange "consisted of pleasantries between the two."
The two leaders were supposed to meet one-on-one on Tuesday, but Obama cancelled the meeting after Duterte warned him and other leaders against questioning his bloody anti-drug campaign with the words "son of a bitch."
Philippine Senator Alan Peter Cayetano said the "warm handshake and good conversation" between Obama and Duterte was a sign that "all's well that ends well," adding, "There was an efforts on both sides to patch things up."
Marciano Paynor, chief Philippine protocol officer and incoming Philippine ambassador to the United States, said Duterte was learning "quick" during the summit, his international debut since becoming president on June 30.
