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Prominent members of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's government echoed statements made by the bombastic leader, rejecting the influence of the United States as the president celebrated his first 100 days in office Friday.
Foreign Affairs Secretary Perfecto Yasay, in the most forceful show of accord from a top official with President Rodrigo Duterte's anti-U.S. stance, said the president was "compelled to realign" Philippine foreign policy and not submit to U.S. demands and interests.
"Breaking away from the shackling dependency of the Philippines to effectively address both internal and external security threats has become imperative in putting an end to our nation's subservience to United States' interests," Yasay said in a Facebook post.
Yasay's assessment of U.S. ties follows a diplomatic storm over Duterte's declarations over the past eight days that joint U.S.-Philippines military exercises would cease, a defense agreement would be reviewed and at an undisclosed time he might "break up" with the United States.
Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said the Philippine military could manage if treaty ally the United States were to withdraw aid.
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Lorenzana had earlier set a conciliatory tone, but on Friday Lorenzana said the value of U.S. military aid to the Philippines was "not that much", and the military could ask Congress to make up for a shortfall of some $50 million-$100 million a year in U.S. military aid.
"We can live without (that)," Lorenzana told a foreign correspondents' forum.
Duterte, who self-identifies as a leftist, won the presidential election in May on a promise to wipe out drugs and drug dealers.
About 300 activists and supporters of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte marched near the presidential palace in Manila on Friday in a rally marking his first 100 days in office.
One activist said he was generally happy with Duterte's performance, but urged him to address the issue on extrajudicial killings.
"The president proved that the reforms can be achieved in just a short period, so we are one with him in his fight for change and peace in our country, but at the same time we are concerned about the war on drugs, especially the terror effect in our communities, so we support the war on drugs, but they should be anchored on the socio-economic needs of our people," said New Patriotic Alliance Metro Manila spokesperson Raymond Palatino.
Some 3,600 people have been killed in his anti-drugs drive, which has drawn a backlash from the United States and others.
On Monday, Duterte said U.S. President Barack Obama should "go to hell," the latest rebuke stemming from U.S. concern about Duterte's deadly war on drugs.
On Thursday, Duterte said the United States and European Union should withdraw their assistance from the Philippines if they were unhappy with his crackdown.
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