By Raïssa Robles –
Just before boarding the plane to Tokyo, President Rodrigo Duterte read a prepared speech that spoke of friendship and shared alliance with Japan.

At times, his eyes would dart sideways and he would clamp his mouth shut, as if he was stopping himself from saying something.

On the front row sat his foreign secretary, Perfecto Yasay, who had just warned the media not to “provoke” the president into anger with questions. Yasay seemed to sit on the edge of his seat. He was clearly not comfortable, although he sat poker-faced.