When Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte posed for an official photograph with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in the ceremonial hall of Malacanang Palace on Tuesday, their choice of a backdrop could hardly have been less auspicious.
The leaders, who witnessed the signing of 29 bilateral agreements during Xi’s two-day official visit to Manila were pictured in front of El Pacto de Sangre – or The Blood Compact – a 19th-century painting by internationally known artist Juan…