OREANDA-NEWS. The Philippines notified the United States of the termination of a bilateral agreement that regulated the temporary stay of US troops in the country. This was announced by the press secretary of the President of the Philippines, Salvador Panelo, reports the Philippine publication.

According to Panelo, the notice was signed by Foreign Minister Theodoro Loxin, Jr., on the same day the document was sent to the US Embassy. “As President Rodrigo Duterte said, it’s time for us to rely on our own resources”, the spokesman said. According to Panelo, Duterte wants relations with other states to be built "on the basis of equality and justice". “The agreement should not be one-sided”, Manila Bulletin quotes him. The agreement on the status of the armed forces will cease to be valid 180 days after Washington receives notice of termination, he added.

According to media reports, Duterte decided to cancel the contract after the United States canceled the visa of the Philippine Senator Ronald de la Rosa. Washington believes that the politician was involved in the persecution of opposition politician Leila de Lima, one of Duterte’s main critics. Due to a visa denial, the President of the Philippines rejected the offer of U.S. leader Donald Trump to attend the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit in March and barred cabinet members from visiting the United States.