President Rodrigo Duterte - US Special Forces must leave Mindanao

President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday said the US Special Forces must leave Mindanao, saying their presence would only worsen the situation in the strife-torn region.

“The US Special Forces, they have to go. They have to (leave) Mindanao. There are many (Americans) there,” the President said in a speech at the oath-taking ceremony of the latest batch of his appointees in Malacañang.

“I just could not say it (at the Asean summit in Laos) because I don’t want a rift with America. The situation there (in Mindanao) will be more volatile. If they are seen there, they will really be killed,” he added.