MANILA – President Rodrigo had a telephone conversation with United States (US) President Donald Trump to tackle bilateral cooperation on coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) response.
It was his former aide and now Sen. Christopher “Bong” Go who posted on social media on Sunday evening the Duterte and Trump talk.
According to Go, Trump phoned Duterte at around 10:10 p.m. on Sunday and it lasted for 18 minutes.
“They discussed bilateral cooperation on the COVID-19 response,” said Go.
Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque meanwhile said it was the US government who initiated the talk.
“I am not allowed to talk about the details but it is about a possible cooperation,” Roque added.
The Philippines has the highest number of COVID-19 cases in Southeast Asia, with 6,259 cases. Of that number, 409 have died and 572 have recovered.
The US, meanwhile, has the highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths worldwide, with 735,366 people who have contracted the viral disease and 39,095 deaths because of it./PN
