During the 2017 ASEAN Summits , Philippine Secretary of National Defense Delfin Lorenzana met with United States Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis , and Lorenzana raised the issue of the Balangiga bells . Mattis made a personal commitment to secure the bells ' return in a meeting with Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte , and he then sought legislation to enable the legal repatriation of the bells . Philippine Ambassador to the United States Babe Romualdez , however , disclosed in an interview with CNN Philippines that President Duterte personally told Mattis to return the bells during the ASEAN Summit meeting in Clark , Pampanga in October 2017
2017 ASEAN Summits
2017 ASEAN Summits
Balangiga bells