Southeast Asian leaders gather as Trump heads to Asia

Summarised from 3 outlets · Updated 15 Nov, 06:26 · Archive

Southeast Asian leaders are meeting in the Philippines as US President Donald Trump arrives for talks with regional and Chinese leaders.

Southeast Asian leaders are gathering in Manila for their flagship annual summit as US President Donald Trump embarks on an Asia Pacific trip focusing attention on trade and regional alliances. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit runs from Sunday until Tuesday, with Trump scheduled to meet Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr during a brief stop in Manila on Tuesday.

Trump will then head to the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Shenzhen, China, where he will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping. This will be their fourth face-to-face meeting in just over a year. The White House has confirmed that Trump, Xi and Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold trilateral talks, described by analysts as significant in symbolism though perhaps not substance.

Trump's visit comes after his administration announced new tariffs on dozens of trade partners, including most Southeast Asian economies, in July. The tariffs, ranging from 10 to 12.5 per cent, were imposed on 60 trade partners over their alleged failure to clamp down on forced labour. The administration is also conducting trade probes over alleged national security concerns that could result in further tariffs for Southeast Asian countries.

Southeast Asia has weathered Trump's trade measures relatively unscathed so far, in part due to the diversion of billions of dollars of Chinese trade through the region. However, the trilateral meeting between Trump, Xi and Putin has been likened by observers to a modern-day Yalta. An associate professor at the University of Nevada suggested the meeting 'might be more symbolic than substantive, although symbolism itself matters in great-power diplomacy'.

How it is being reported

• World leaders head to Asia for back-to-back diplomatic summitsTussle for influence as trade, tech and regional security to take centre stage in China, Philippines and Cambodia meetings The global political centre of gravity will be firmly in Asia this week as world leaders fly in for back-to-back high-level summits against the backdrop of the tussle for influence between the superpowers China and the US. Beijing will have the home advantage when it welcomes Donald Trump to its southern technology hub of Shenzhen for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) leaders’ meeting. It starts two weeks after the US leader lost midterm elections . Continue…The Guardian · 15 Nov, 04:00
• Global powers converge on Manila as ASEAN summit kicks offSoutheast Asian heads of state will face questions on trade, security and an ongoing energy crisis while playing host to global leaders.The Japan Times · 14 Nov, 23:55
• Southeast Asian leaders to meet as Trump visit highlights trade disruptionASEAN summit comes as US president embarks on Asia trip that will see him meet China's Xi.Al Jazeera · 14 Nov, 06:48

In this story: Donald Trump · Ferdinand Marcos Jr · Xi Jinping · Vladimir Putin · ASEAN · Manila · Shenzhen · China

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem · Corrections log