Duterte wants the United States to return war trophies seized more than 100 years ago: three historic church bells that were taken from the Philippine village of Balangiga after a bloody clash during the Philippine-American War.

In 1899, fighting broke out between U.S. troops and Filipino nationalists after Spain ceded control of the Philippines to the U.S. following Spain’s defeat in the Spanish-American War. The nationalists seized control of the main island in the Philippines and declared a republic, vowing not to succumb to American imperial rule. More than 200,000 Filipino civilians and 4,800 American troops died in the ensuing conflict, which formally ended in 1902 as the U.S. suppressed the uprising.