Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte says US President-elect Donald Trump supports his campaign against drugs.
"He was wishing me success in my campaign against the drug problem. He understood the way we are handling it and he said there is nothing wrong with protecting your country,” said Duterte on Saturday following a seven-minute phone conversation with Trump
According to official police figures, during Duterte’s drug crackdown, which began when he took office in June, over 2,500 people have been killed.
“It was very encouraging in the sense that I suppose that what he wanted to say was that he would be the last to interfere in the affairs of our own country," added Duterte.
He added that Trump seemed to be "quite sensitive" on the war against drugs and that they had built a "rapport" during their conversation.
"He wishes me well, too, in my campaign, and he said that, well, we are doing it as a sovereign nation, the right way," added Duterte.
Duterte also said that Trump had invited him to Washington and New York, and to notify him if "if I'm around."
Since coming to power, Duterte has been ridiculing the United States, European Union, and United Nations over their concerns that extrajudicial killings may be taking place during his crackdown.