TRADE AND SECURITY AGENDA
Trump will visit Malaysia, Japan, and South Korea on his first Asia tour since returning to office in January, with an ambitious agenda focused on trade, diplomacy, and security. He said he hopes for a “very good meeting” with Xi, signalling optimism about ending the US-China trade war before new tariffs take effect on Nov 1.
The US president also said he is “open” to meeting North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during the trip, their first encounter since 2019, and acknowledged that Pyongyang “has a lot of nuclear weapons.”
Trump’s first stop is Malaysia, where he will attend the ASEAN summit, sign a trade pact, and witness a peace accord between Thailand and Cambodia. He will then meet Japan’s new prime minister Sanae Takaichi in Tokyo before travelling to Busan, South Korea, for the APEC summit and a long-awaited meeting with Xi.
US and Chinese negotiators held “very constructive” preliminary trade talks in Malaysia, according to a US Treasury spokesperson. Trump said he will also raise fentanyl trafficking with Xi as part of his broader anti-drug push.
Source: CNA
