Duterte regrets Obama comments came across as personal attack

"President Duterte explained that the press reports that President Obama would 'lecture' him on extrajudicial killings led to his strong comments, which in turn elicited concern," the Philippines said in a statement released at a summit in Laos.

"He regrets that his remarks to the press have caused much controversy," it added.

(Reporting by John Chalmers; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)