Duterte showed his pride in wearing the national costume of the Philippines, Barong Tagalog in his appearance in the ASEAN Summit.
President Rodrigo Duterte looked different among all the heads of states who are attending the 28th and 29th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summits in Vientiane, Laos.
In the opening ceremony of the summit, Duterte wears the Barong Tagalog, paired with dark brown pants.
This is while the other presidents wear the usual ‘coat and tie’ in the opening of the event.
Duterte, pinned a flag of the Philippines on the collar of his barong, looking different from former presidents who attended such events outside the country.
In the photo, leaders of the ASEAN hold hands while posing for a group photo.
From left to right, they are Myanmar’s State Counsellor and Foreign Minister Aung San Suu Kyi, Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, Vietnam’s President Tran Dai Quang, Laos President Bounnhang Vorachit, Laos Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith, Philippine’s President Rodrigo Duterte, Brunei Foreign Minister and Prime Minister Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo.
The ASEAN summits coincided with US President Barack Obama’s state visit to the socialist country of Laos.
The supposedly scheduled bilateral talks between the two leaders was cancelled and made headlines in the international media after Duterte’s remarks against Obama has spoiled his maiden appearance in the international stage as head of state.
The attendance of Duterte at the regional bloc’s yearly conference was his first foreign travel since he took office on June 30.
He warmly shook hands and exchanged pleasantries with the nine other heads of Asean member-states during the formal opening held at the National Convention Center.
Before the summit formally started, the president briefly met with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
The two leaders committed to further develop the trade relations between the Philippines and the city-state of Singapore.
Duterte also held a bilateral meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who extended his sympathies for the families of those who died and were hurt in an explosion in Davao City last week.
“Mr. President, (you are) quite a famous figure also in Japan and I’m very excited to see you in person,” Abe told the President.
“I would like to take this opportunity to express my heartfelt condolences for the victims and their family members,” he said.
