Duterte on US: I’d rather be friendly to them now

President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday changed his rhetoric against the United States, saying this time that he'd "rather be friendly to them now."

At an event in Eastern Samar to commemorate the 116th Balangiga Encounter Day, Duterte said the Americans, which he has lambasted many times in the past, have "redeemed themselves a lot."

"There are so many factors involved but I'd rather be friendly to them now because aside from these episodes of, I said, sad incidents, overall I think the Americans also redeemed themselves a lot," he said.

The President specifically mentioned the assistance given by the US to Filipino soldiers throughout the years, starting from  World War II.

Duterte has repeatedly badmouthed the US, including its former president, Barack Obama, after it expressed concern over the alleged extrajudicial killings blamed on his war on drugs.

In October last year, Duerte declared that he was breaking the Philippines' long-standing military and economic alliance with the US.

During Thursday's event, Duterte admitted that he was advised by the Department of Foreign Affairs to "temper" his language.

"I was under advice by the Department of Foreign Affairs that I would just temper my language and avoid magmura kasi—which I'm prone to do if I get emotional," he said.

He also said the US government's efforts to return the Balangiga bells to the Philippines influenced his change of attitude toward them.

"I was under advice that the negotiations are going on, that the government of America is looking for ways how to get out of this problem of the Balangiga bells because it remains to be not only the source of irritation but the source of a painful reaction, what really happened to our countrymen," he said.

He said he was “emotional” when he delivered an impassioned remark during his last State of the Nation Address about the bells that were seized by the US Army as war booty in Balangiga, Eastern Samar. —KBK, GMA News