Duterte asking if Filipinos 'patriotic enough' to support independent foreign policy —Palace

President Rodrigo Duterte's comments asking Filipinos to be ready to sacrifice is his way of rallying patriotic support for a shift to what he has described as an independent foreign policy, according to a Palace official.

Presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella on Thursday clarified Duterte’s earlier statement telling Filipinos to “sacrifice a little” if the Philippines economic relationship with the United States changes.

“Given the fear, he was asking, would the Filipinos believe enough in the nation to set a course, to set an independent course in spite of economic difficulties if and when it should happen,” he said.

“He’s not saying it will but he said if and when it should happen, would we be willing enough? Would we be patriotic enough to stand behind the Philippines in declaring an independent foreign policy?” he added.

After inspecting a shabu laboratory in Arayat, Pampanga on Tuesday, Duterte reiterated his intention to forge stronger alliances with China and Russia.

“Why I’m asking the Filipino in the coming days kung totohanin talaga ng Amerika, I’m going to ask you to sacrifice a little bit. But by next year, I would have entered alliances with so many countries. I will have an alliance in the military, trade and commerce with China. I have talked to [Prime Minister Dmitry] Medvedev of Russia and we agreed that I will go there and we’ll talk about what, how they can help us here,” Duterte said.

Abella, however, noted that the Philippines' relationship with the US goes deeper than economics.

“It may be difficult and it may be challenging, but definitely the President sees it as something that will actually add to our well-being and prosperity as a nation,” Abella said. —JST, GMA News