The Philippine foreign secretary says the ambassador and consuls in Canada are being recalled over Ottawa's failure to take back truckloads of garbage that Filipino officials say were illegally shipped to the Philippines years ago.

Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. tweeted Thursday that the Philippines "shall maintain a diminished diplomatic presence in Canada until its garbage is ship bound there."

President Rodrigo Duterte threatened last month to forcibly ship the containers of garbage back to Canada and dump some at its embassy in Manila if Canadian officials don't take back the waste by May 15.

More than 100 containers of household trash, including plastic bottles and bags, newspapers and used adult diapers, were shipped in batches from Canada to the Philippines from 2013 to 2014.