Trump vows US to be ‘strong partner’ of Southeast Asia
US President Donald Trump on Sunday demonstrated his willingness to work closely with Southeast Asian countries, telling their leaders that Washington wants to be a “stronger partner” for them.
In his opening remarks at a US-Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) summit in Kuala Lumpur, Trump said the United States is committed to a free, open and thriving Indo-Pacific at a time when China’s influence is rapidly expanding in the region.
“The United States is with you 100 percent and we intend to be a strong partner and friend for many generations to come,” he said.
Trump arrived in the Malaysian capital earlier in the day to attend meetings with leaders of Asean for the first time since 2017.
Claiming the United States is now in a “golden age,” Trump said that by cooperating with Asean, he wants to create “incredible prosperity for the nations on both sides of the Pacific Ocean.”
As elsewhere, countries in Southeast Asia, including Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam, have been affected by Trump’s sweeping tariffs and unpredictable approach to diplomacy.
Asean, known for its long-standing policy of neutrality, has been careful not to be drawn into the intensifying rivalry between Washington and Beijing.
Still, the bloc has gauged the extent of US interest in Southeast Asia by whether a US president attends the regional grouping’s annual meetings with its partners.
Record trade
At Sunday’s summit, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim welcomed Trump’s attendance. Ibrahim noted that trade between Southeast Asia and the United States hit a record $453 billion last year.
“Today, we’ll make the promise of our relationship ever greater,” the prime minister said.
The US government announced bilateral agreements aimed at diversifying supply chains of critical minerals with Malaysia and Thailand.
Malaysia marked Trump’s first stop on his first trip to Asia since returning to office in January.
Trump landed in Tokyo later on Monday, a day before his first face-to-face meeting with Japan’s new prime minister, Sanae Takaichi.
The US president is on the second leg of his nearly weeklong, three-nation trip to Asia, which began with Malaysia.
Visiting Japan for the first time since June 2019, during his first term as president, Trump’s primary goal is to reassure the key ally of its commitment to working closely together amid China’s rise and encourage Japanese companies to further invest in the US.
After arriving in Tokyo amid tight security, Trump will first meet with Emperor Naruhito before holding talks the following day with Takaichi, who became Japan’s first female leader after taking office just a week ago.
Favorable impression
On Saturday, Takaichi and Trump spoke by phone briefly and told reporters afterward that they had a favorable impression of each other.
Hours before his arrival at Tokyo’s Haneda airport, Trump praised Takaichi for being “philosophically close” to Japan’s former leader Shinzo Abe.
“It’s going to be very good. That really helps Japan. I think she’s going to be great,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One.
En route to Tokyo from Kuala Lumpur, Trump told reporters on Air Force One that he wanted to meet Kim Jong Un should the North Korean leader wish to do so and did not rule out extending his ongoing Asia trip.
“I haven’t set anything, but I’d love to meet with him, if he’d like to meet. I got along great with Kim Jong Un … I’ll be in South Korea,” Trump said, talking to reporters.
Trump indicated that he was open to stretching out his nearly weeklong trip, when asked about such a possibility, adding, “I’ll be in South Korea so I can be right over there.”
Trump met Kim three times—in Singapore, Vietnam and at the inter-Korean truce village of Panmunjeom—between 2018 and 2019 during his first term as US president.
He has repeatedly said he had a good relationship with Kim and suggested a number of times his desire to rekindle diplomacy with North Korea, although their nuclear talks ultimately collapsed.
