Threats to technology and minerals trade between the US and China. Washington and Beijing have hiked tariffs on each other’s exports and threatened to halt trade in critical minerals and technologies.
The White House officially announced the trip on Thursday. Details remain in flux, including the meeting between leaders of the world’s two largest economies.
Neither side expects a breakthrough that would restore the terms of trade that existed before Trump’s second-term inauguration in January, according to a person familiar with the conversations.
Instead, the two sides talked about how to deal with disagreements and make small improvements before the meeting. China's commitment to purchase U.S.-made soybeans and Boeing BA.N aircraft, or an extension of current rates, could be included in an interim agreement. Similar promises were broken by Beijing in a 2020 deal with Trump. Washington could let more high-end computer chips flow to Beijing, which in turn could loosen controls on rare earth magnets that have angered Trump.
Or, the talks might not lead to anything. On Wednesday, U.S. The term "pull-aside" used by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to describe the Trump-Xi meeting suggested nothing formal. Trump later told reporters the two would have “a pretty long meeting,” allowing them to “work out a lot of our questions and our doubts and our tremendous assets together.”
China has not confirmed a meeting is planned.
Trump will meet world leaders and visit three nations. According to Mira Rapp-Hooper, a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution and a former official in the Biden administration, Trump's Asia policy has been characterized by a great deal of pressure placed on the trade policies and defense spending of individual nations. She stated, "The high-level question on this trip really is who does the United States stand with, and what does it stand for." Trump is expected at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit, which starts Sunday in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
En route to Malaysia, Trump was due to make a refueling stop in Qatar, where he would briefly meet its emir and prime minister on board Air Force One, according to a White House official. Qatar has been a mediator in the conflict in Gaza.
He might be in charge of signing a ceasefire agreement between Thailand and Cambodia in Kuala Lumpur. The deal would formalise an agreement that ended the worst fighting in years between the two countries in July.
After that stop, Trump will head to Japan to meet Sanae Takaichi, the newly elected prime minister. It is anticipated that Takaichi will implement her predecessor's plans to spend more on the military and invest $550 billion in investments directed by Trump in the United States. Then, ahead of an international trade summit, Trump plans to meet Xi in Busan, South Korea. The White House's schedule for Thursday indicates that Trump will return to Washington before the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation leaders' forum begins. Trump has threatened to raise tariffs on Chinese imports to a total of some 155% from November 1 if they cannot strike a deal. That would almost certainly provoke a reaction from Beijing and end a truce that paused tit-for-tat hikes.
Beyond trade, the two leaders are expected to talk about Taiwan, a long-running issue between the United States and China, and Russia, a Chinese ally that is under more sanctions because of the war in Ukraine. A U.S. official said, "There’s no intent from the U.S. side to discuss other issues" other than China's trade, export controls, and oil purchases from Russia. Trump would be ready to repeat previous responses if Xi brought up other topics, the official added. Trump told reporters before leaving the White House on Friday that he expected the Taiwan issue to come up in his talks with Xi. Trump also said he will likely raise the issue of releasing Jimmy Lai, the founder of the now-defunct pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily. Lai is serving a prison sentence in Hong Kong under Beijing-imposed national security laws.
“It’s on my list. I’m going to ask ... "We'll wait and see," Trump told reporters. Are trade talks with Canada going to resume? After Trump abruptly cut off talks, it was unclear whether he would attempt to resume negotiations with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, who is also traveling in Asia. Another official stated that the two likely would seek each other out on Wednesday at a dinner with other leaders. Trump stated to reporters that he was "satisfied with the deal we have" and that he did not intend to meet with Carney. In addition, Trump is attempting to strengthen a deal with South Korea and close trade deals with Malaysia and India. U.S. and South Korean relations have been strained by Seoul’s concerns over the $350 billion investment Trump has sought in U.S. companies and the deportations of the country’s foreign workers.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung wants Trump to pursue peace with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un. According to another person with knowledge of the discussions, U.S. officials considered going to the demilitarized zone that separates the two Koreas but never confirmed it. Another U.S. official said on Friday that no Kim-Trump meeting was on the schedule for the trip.
Trump said contacting North Korea’s secluded society is challenging and told reporters: “If you want to put out the word, I’m open to it. You know, they don’t have a lot of telephone service.
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