Duterte skips ASEAN-Australia Breakfast Summit in Singapore

President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday skipped the breakfast meeting with his fellow Southeast Asian leaders and Australia’s Prime Minister Scott Morrison in Singapore.

Duterte was instead represented by Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro "Teddy Boy" Locsin Jr. in the meeting with Australia, one of the dialogue partners of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

WATCH: Foreign Affairs Sec. Teodoro Locsin Jr. substitutes for Pres. Duterte in ASEAN-Australia breakfast summit #ASEAN2018 | via @Joseph_Morong @gmanews pic.twitter.com/6Qo0tBnpC2

— DZBB Super Radyo (@dzbb) November 14, 2018

Malacañang has yet to explain Duterte’s absence from the event, which is one of the meetings with world leaders set for the 33rd ASEAN Summit.

Also in attendance in the three-day summit are other ASEAN partners South Korea, Russia, Japan, India, China and the United States.

It was not the first time Duterte skipped an event while representing the country on the international stage.

The President did not attend the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders’ Summit gala dinner for two consecutive years.

At APEC 2016 in Peru, the President failed to attend the gala dinner due to migraine.

Last year in Vietnam, Duterte’s top officials said he skipped the event so he could attend to ASEAN hosting matters and supervise and coordinate the safe recovery of Vietnamese captives of the Abu Sayyaf Group.

He was also a no-show at the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit in Sydney last March, where he was represented by then-Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano.

Duterte chose to attend the Philippine Military Academy graduation ceremonies in Baguio City instead. —KBK/KG, GMA News