Trump heads to 3-country sprint in Asia, sets meet with China’s Xi
WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump heads to Asia on Friday for the first time this term, a trip where he’s expected to work on investment deals and peace efforts before meeting face-to-face with Chinese President Xi Jinping to try to deescalate a trade war.
The president, who is scheduled to leave the White House late Friday night, will have a long-haul flight that has him arriving in Malaysia on Sunday morning, the first stop of a three-country sprint.
His trip comes as the US government shutdown drags on. Many federal workers are set to miss their first full paycheck this week, there are flight disruptions as already-squeezed air traffic controllers work without pay, and states are confronting the possibility that federal food aid could dry up.
As Republicans reject Democratic demands for health-care funds that the GOP says will in large part be spent on illegal aliens, there’s no sign of a break in the impasse.
Asean
Trump’s first stop is at a regional summit in Kuala Lumpur. Trump’s visit comes as Malaysia and the US have been working to address a skirmish between Thailand and Cambodia.
On Sunday, he’s scheduled to have a bilateral meeting with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, followed by a joint signing ceremony with the prime ministers of Thailand and Cambodia.
Trump threatened earlier this year to withhold trade deals with the countries if they didn’t stop fighting, and his administration has since been working with Malaysia to nail down an expanded ceasefire.
The US leader on Sunday may also have a significant meeting with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who wants to see the United States cut a 40-percent tariff on Brazilian imports. The US administration has justified the tariffs by citing Brazil’s criminal prosecution of former President Jair Bolsonaro —a Trump ally.
South America strikes
Beyond trade, Lula on Friday also criticized the US campaign of military strikes off the South American coast in the name of fighting drug trafficking. He said he planned to raise concerns with Trump at a meeting on Sunday in Malaysia. The White House has not yet publicly confirmed the meeting is set to take place.
From there, Trump heads to Japan and South Korea, where he’s expected to make progress on talks for at least $900 billion in investments for US factories and other projects that those countries committed to in return for easing Trump’s planned tariff rates down to 15 percent from 25 percent.
The trip to Tokyo comes a week after Japan elected its first female prime minister, Sanae Takaichi. Trump is set to meet with Takaichi, who is a protégé of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Trump was close to Abe, who was assassinated after leaving office.
While there, Trump is expected to be hosted by Japanese Emperor Naruhito, and meet with US troops who are stationed in Japan, according to a senior US official who was not authorized to speak publicly and spoke to reporters on condition of anonymity about the planned trip.
In South Korea, Trump is expected to hold a highly anticipated meeting with China’s Xi on the sidelines of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit.
