Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte should "restrain himself, especially when speaking to provocative media," a priest says.

Fr Eliseo Mercado, an Oblate missionary in Mindanao, said Mr Duterte responds negatively to hypothetical and provocative questions by the media.

In a television interview, Mr Duterte threatened to swear at US President Barack Obama who said he might discuss the issue of drug related killings with Mr Duterte during a meeting in Laos this week.

"Who does he think he is? I am no American puppet," said Mr Duterte. "Son of a bitch, I will swear at you," he added.

Yesterday, the US government announced that Mr Obama's meeting with Mr Duterte had been cancelled.

Fr Mercado said that "adopting a street-fighting stance based on a perception is wrong and ill-advised."

"I thought he learned his lesson already . . . no one adopts that type of street-fighting attitude anymore."

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Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte should "restrain himself, especially when speaking to