The Philippines' president gave a profanity-laced recounting of his phone call with Donald Trump
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte and US President-elect Donald Trump have been compared numerous times for their blunt style and reputations as outsiders.
When Trump won the US election in November, Duterte heralded his victory, and Trump reportedly told Duterte that he was pursuing the Philippines' bloody drug war "the right way."
On Wednesday, Duterte, who has become known for his rough language and colorful speaking style, debuted his impression of Trump in a profanity-laced recounting of his December 2 phone call with the US president-elect.
During a speech at a UN Convention Against Corruption conference at the Malacañan presidential palace in Manila, Duterte shared his version of their seven-minute conversation:
Duterte then spoke in Tagalog, his native tongue, before returning to his retelling of the conversation:
Duterte has developed a reputation for speaking bluntly, often forgoing diplomatic formalities and lacing his comments with obscenities. This was not his first impression, either. He's also impersonated his foreign secretary and his law-school professors, according to Philippine news site Rappler.
The Philippine president said his chat with Trump left him feeling "like a saint" because of the drastic change in tone from that of the current US administration.
Duterte's seeming chumminess with Trump is in sharp contrast to his relationship with Obama, who, along with other countries and international groups, has heavily criticized the bloody drug war initiated by Duterte when he took office this summer.
Earlier this year, Duterte gave remarks that were widely interpreted as him calling Obama a "son of a whore." He apologized for that incident, but in October, Duterte again rebuked Obama and the international community.
"Mr. Obama, you can go to hell. EU, better choose purgatory ... Hell is full. Why should I be scared of you?" he told a group of local officials in a Manila suburb.
Duterte has also made overtures to China and to Russian President Vladimir Putin - gestures that are part of Duterte's "separation" from his country's longtime alliance with the US.
Since Duterte took office at the end of June, the anti-narcotics campaign mounted by Philippine authorities has led to the deaths of about 4,800 Filipinos. Many of those killings remain under investigation or were unrelated to police operations, leading to accusations that vigilantes, death squads, and hit men are adding to the body count.
You can see a clip of Duterte's comments below: