MANILA, Philippines – President Aquino Monday said he is set to meet with US Ambassador to the Philippines Harry Thomas Jr. this week to “touch base” with one of the country's “oldest and steadfast allies.”

The President however denied that he would justify to the US envoy the country’s controversial boycott of the Nobel Peace prize ceremony that honored Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo in Norway last week.

The meeting between the President and the US envoy comes amid reports that Washington was not pleased with the absence of the Philippines in the Oslo event at the request of China.

“I think it was the ambassador who asked for the meeting. We have not had an opportunity to touch base from the early stage,” the President told reporters in the Palace, adding his meeting with the US envoy will cover a “wide range of topics.” “More than anything, we are touching base again,” he said.

Asked if he would raise the country’s decision on skipping Nobel ceremony to the US envoy, the President said: “I don’t think it behooves the Philippines to explain to other countries its actions. We are a sovereign country.”

The President earlier confessed that the government did not send any representative to the Nobel event in a bid to save five Filipinos in death row in China. Mr. Aquino initially claimed that the absence of the Philippine delegation to the Nobel ceremony was due to a conflict of schedule but later admitted that the safety of Filipino workers is a paramount concern of his administration.

The President admitted he was told of the possibility that Washington may withdraw its development grant to the Philippines over its absence in the Nobel ceremony.  Such warning from Washington however was still "unofficial," according to the President.

He said some embassy officials are now verifying if any US official actually threatened to pull out development assistance in the Philippines.

Last May, Ambassador Thomas visited Aquino in his residence in Times Street, Quezon City, before he formally took his oath of office as the country's newly elected president.