‘Binay welcomes visiting leaders only during state visits’

MANILA, Philippines - Vice President Jejomar Binay’s absence at the arrival rites of the Vietnamese prime minister and Indonesian president should not be magnified as the Vice President only welcomes visiting leaders during state visits, his camp said yesterday.

In a text message, Binay’s spokesman Joey Salgado said that the Vice President’s absence at the arrival rites for Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono should not be magnified because Dung’s and Yodhoyono’s visits were for the World Economic Forum.