As if to make it appear that the Philippines is a country of peaceful people, President Duterte asked former president Fidel V. Ramos to try to China over the arbitration court ruling on the Philippine claim to islands in the South China Sea. Ramos got as far as Hong Kong, where, he said, he "broke the ice but not the iceberg".In effect the Philippines is starting anew over the conflict in an area said to be loaded with crude oil and possibly other minerals. Sending Ramos was not the usual Duterte way, compared to how he has tried to solve the drug problem.

Macasaet, A. P. (2016, August 19). Duterte moves on Spartly ruling. Malaya Business Insight, p. A2.