US President Donald Trump on Friday embarked on a tour of Asia that many hope will ease trade tensions in the region and repair damaged ties with China.
Trump, who left Washington on Friday night, is set for a five-day trip to Malaysia, Japan and South Korea, his first to the region and longest journey abroad since taking office in January.
But the most important stop on his itinerary will come at the end of the month, when he is expected to discuss trade, and possibly Taiwan, with Chinese leader Xi Jinping at the Apec summit in South Korea.
From easing tensions with China to addressing South Korea’s trade concerns and potentially positioning himself as a peacemaker in Southeast Asia. Here are the five key questions to know.
Will Trump meet Xi Jinping?
On Thursday, Trump is expected to meet with Chinese Premier Xi Jinping, according to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.
However, what they might talk about is generating more speculation than any other issue on the agenda at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Gyeongju, South Korea, and Leavitt did not provide further details on Thursday night.
The talks between the two leaders are expected to calm trade tensions that risk damaging the world’s two biggest economies.
Trump recently offered to lower tariffs on Chinese exports to the US but insisted that Beijing, too, had to make concessions, including resuming purchases of US soya beans, curbing the flow of ingredients used to make the opioid fentanyl.
A failure to lower trade tensions could further harm US industries that are already reeling from the fallout of Trump’s tariffs.
The leaders are also expected to discuss Taiwan, amid concern that Trump could waver on Washington’s support for the democratic, self-governing island under pressure from Xi.
Will there be tariff deals for Southeast Asia?
Trump’s attendance at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Kuala Lumpur comes at a time for the regional bloc, whose 10 members together exported goods worth $312 billion to the US last year, compared with $142 billion in 2017.
Trump, who hasn’t attended an ASEAN summit since 2017, will meet the bloc’s leaders on Sunday, when discussions are expected to focus on Vietnam and Thailand, the two countries that are the most significant contributors to the US trade deficit.
End to another ‘war’?
Beyond trade, Trump’s visit to Malaysia may have a diplomatic angle. The president is reportedly keen to witness progress on a fragile ceasefire between Thailand and Cambodia, brokered after deadly clashes in July.
A successful agreement would give Trump a chance to highlight his role as a peacemaker on the world stage.
Malaysia brokered a fragile ceasefire after five days of clashes in July that left dozens of people dead and about 300,000 displaced, but the cause of the friction remains unresolved.
Will he meet Kim Jong-un (again)?
At this stage, a meeting between Trump and Kim Jong-un appears unlikely. However, with the prospect of an end to the Ukraine war quickly receding, Trump could be persuaded to turn his attention towards his “friend” Kim and the intractable problem of North Korea’s nuclear programme.
CNN, citing anonymous sources, reported last weekend that US officials had discussed setting up a meeting during his visit to Asia, and Trump said in August that he would like to meet his North Korean counterpart “in the appropriate future”.
But his three previous attempts to persuade Kim to rein in his nuclear ambitions – at two summits in 2018 and 2019, and during a quickly arranged visit to the demilitarised zone separating North and South Korea later that year – ended in failure.
Has the ICE raid in Georgia cooled ties with South Korea?
Last month’s immigration raid by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents at a South Korean-owned electric battery plant under construction in Georgia sparked widespread anger in Seoul.
About 300 South Korean nationals were detained, amid allegations that they were working at the factory illegally. The South Korean public is unlikely to forget the incident anytime soon, but the country’s president, Lee Jae-myung, has more pressing issues to address with Trump in Gyeongju, where they are expected to meet on Wednesday.
