Fact check: Donald Trump hasn't spoken about Duterte’s ICC arrest

MANILA, Philippines — Two Facebook posts falsely claimed that former US President Donald Trump publicly condemned the arrest of former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The first post, formatted to appear as a report from The Washington Post, includes an alleged statement in which Trump expresses sadness over Duterte’s arrest, calls him a "good friend" and threatens to impose sanctions against the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. 

It also claimed that Trump planned to call Chinese President Xi Jinping to "discuss this serious matter."

Meanwhile, another shared post, attributed to BBC News, copied an alleged quote from Trump.

This post portrayed Trump as saying he had a "tremendous" relationship with Duterte, criticizing Marcos, and warning that the US would impose 50% tariffs on the Philippines unless Duterte was released.

RATING: This is fake.  

Facts

As of writing, no official statements, press releases, or verified social media posts from Donald Trump or any US government agency have addressed Duterte’s arrest.

The alleged quotes attributed to Trump do not appear in any credible news sources.

Additionally, the font, layout and design elements of the viral posts do not match the official styles of The Washington Post or BBC News, indicating that the graphics were likely fabricated.

Furthermore, neither news agency has published any reports containing the alleged statement.

Why we fact-checked this

The first Facebook post has been shared over 2,000 times and has received more than 200 comments.

Meanwhile, the second post, which falsely attributes a quote to BBC News, has gained even more traction, with over 17,000 shares and more than 800 comments.

As of publishing, both posts remain online.

Duterte was arrested on March 11, 2025, at Ninoy Aquino International Airport upon returning from Hong Kong. His arrest was carried out under a warrant issued by the ICC, which has charged him with crimes against humanity for his administration’s deadly war on drugs.

About 12 hours after his arrest, Duterte was flown out of the Philippines on a chartered flight to The Hague, Netherlands, where he is expected to face trial.