President Rodrigo Duterte, fresh from his first overseas trip, said Saturday his government will pursue an "independent foreign policy".

In his a press conference in Davao City upon arriving from trips to Laos for the Association of Southeast Asian Nation (ASEAN) summit and and Indonesia for a working visit, Duterte said: "We will observe and must insist on the time-honored principle of sovereignty and equality, non-interference and commitment of peaceful settlement of disputes that will serve our people and protect the interest of the country."

Duterte first mentioned the sentence during his speech and repeated it during the subsequent interview with the media.

He arrived from Jakarta accompanied by Cabinet secretaries and other officials at the Davao International Airport at 11:30 pm.

Duterte insisted his statement does not mean to offend or start a feud with any foreign country.

"I think that was the most telling words I could have uttered in any international body. It's not to offend anybody but send a message we have every right to pursue and independent foreign policy," he said.

Asked to elaborate on the policy his government is taking, Duterte said it must cover everything in terms of government of foreign relations.

"There is no commonality of interest here. It should cover all aspects of governance and international relations," he said.

What is certain, Duterte said, is he will exercise the powers of his office solely to promote the best interest of the country.

Duterte said advancing the country's interest was his primary objective when he attended the ASEAN Summit in Laos.

“I engaged the leaders of ASEAN and its dialogue partners on important regional and international issues that impact on peace, security, stability and prosperity of our region,” he said. Emmnanuel Tupas