Duterte: I'll 'Break Up' With US, Obama 'Can Go to Hell'

Someone is displeased
By Daniel Kay,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 4, 2016 11:33 AM CDT
Duterte Tells Off Obama—Again
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte addresses army troopers during his visit to its headquarters in Taguig city, east of Manila,   (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez)

Perhaps teeing up his next apology, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte continued his string of inflammatory, anti-US statements by telling President Obama to "go to hell" Tuesday, Reuters reports, after the US refused to sell him weapons to continue his violent crackdown on drug dealers. "If you don't want to sell arms, I'll go to Russia," Duterte said. "I sent the generals to Russia and Russia said 'do not worry, we have everything you need, we'll give it to you.' And as for China, they said 'just come over and sign and everything will be delivered.' " Duterte previously called Obama a "son of a bitch," and a State Department rep calls his latest stance "at odds with the warm relationship" the two countries have long enjoyed.

Duterte's bloody campaign is averaging 38 deaths a day, Al-Jazeera reported in September, and his methods have drawn harsh criticism from the international community, including the US. Duterte on Tuesday expressed frustration at this slight, saying: "Instead of helping us, the first to hit was the State Department. So you can go to hell, Mr. Obama, you can go to hell." He then threatened to "break up" with the US, then added, for good measure: "EU, better choose purgatory. Hell is full already. Why should I be afraid of you?" (On Sunday, he was busily apologizing to the Jewish community for a jab about Adolf Hitler.)

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