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Business Times
6 days ago
- Business
- Business Times
Rubio makes first visit to Asia as Trump tariffs loom
[KUALA LUMPUR] US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will meet with South-east Asian counterparts on Thursday in his first visit to Asia since taking office, and will try to reassure them the region is a priority for Washington, even as President Donald Trump targets it in his global tariff offensive. Washington's top diplomat will meet foreign ministers of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations gathered in Kuala Lumpur, and also hold talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov who is in the Malaysian capital, according to the US State Department. Rubio's trip is part of an effort to renew US focus on the Indo-Pacific and look beyond the conflicts in the Middle East and Europe that have consumed much of the Trump administration's attention, with Rubio balancing dual responsibilities as secretary of state and national security adviser. However, Trump's global tariff strategy is likely to cast a shadow over the trip, after the president announced steep tariffs to take effect on August 1 on six Asean members, including Malaysia, as well as on close North-east Asian allies Japan and South Korea. Rubio will nevertheless seek to firm up US relationships with partners and allies, who have been unnerved by the tariffs, and is likely to press the case that the United States remains a better partner than China, Washington's main strategic rival, experts said. 'This is significant, and it's an effort to try to counter that Chinese diplomatic and economic offensive,' said Victor Cha, president of the geopolitics and foreign policy department at Washington's Center for Strategic and International Studies. A NEWSLETTER FOR YOU Friday, 8.30 am Asean Business Business insights centering on South-east Asia's fast-growing economies. Sign Up Sign Up Rubio will also meet with Lavrov later on Thursday, according to the US State Department schedule. It would be the second in-person meeting between Rubio and Lavrov, and comes at a time when Trump has grown increasingly frustrated with Russian President Vladimir Putin as the war in Ukraine drags on. China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi is also expected to join talks from Thursday, but it was unclear if Rubio would meet with him. 'Better late than ever' A senior US State Department official told reporters on Monday that among Rubio's priorities on the trip was reaffirming Washington's commitment to the region, not just for its sake but because it promotes American prosperity and security. 'It's kind of late, because we're seven months into the administration,' Cha said of Rubio's trip. 'Usually, these happen much sooner. But then again, it is extraordinary circumstances. But I guess better late than never.' Security cooperation is a top priority, including the strategic South China Sea, and combating transnational crime, narcotics, scam centers, and trafficking in persons, said the State Department official, speaking on the condition of anonymity. As well as their unease about Trump's tariff policies, many in the Indo-Pacific have doubts about the willingness of his 'America First' administration to fully engage diplomatically and economically with the region. Trump said this week he would impose a 25 per cent tariff on Japan and South Korea and also took aim at Asean nations, announcing a 25 per cent levy on Malaysia, 32 per cent on Indonesia, 36 per cent on Cambodia and Thailand, and 40 per cent on Laos and Myanmar. Trump has also upset another key Indo-Pacific ally, Australia, which said on Wednesday it was 'urgently seeking more detail' on his threat to raise tariffs to 200 per cent on pharmaceutical imports. According to a draft joint communique seen by Reuters, Asean foreign ministers will express 'concern over rising global trade tensions and growing uncertainties in the international economic landscape, particularly the unilateral actions relating to tariffs.' The draft, dated Monday, before the latest US tariff rates were announced, did not mention the United States and used language similar to an Asean leaders' statement in May. Both said tariffs were 'counterproductive and risk exacerbating global economic fragmentation.' The State Department official said Rubio would be prepared to discuss trade and reiterate that the need to rebalance US trade relationships is significant. The export-reliant Asean is collectively the world's fifth-biggest economy, with some members beneficiaries of supply chain realignments from China. Only Vietnam has secured a deal with Trump, which lowers the levy to 20 per cent from 46 per cent initially. REUTERS
Straits Times
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
South Korea expressed concern over Chinese structure in disputed area of sea
SEOUL - South Korea expressed "deep concern" over China erecting a sea structure off the west coast of the Korean Peninsula during a maritime dialogue with Beijing in Seoul on April 23, Seoul's Foreign Ministry said. The Chinese side during the meeting had explained that the structure was fish-farming equipment and had nothing to do with territorial rights, the ministry said in a statement on April 24. The structure in a disputed area of the Yellow Sea, known in South Korea as the West Sea, has raised alarm bells in Seoul over concerns China could be seeking to stake claims in the Provisional Maritime Zone, where the countries' exclusive economic zones overlap. Both sides agreed to continue communication and with the understanding that the issue should not hinder bilateral relations, the ministry said. "Through diplomatic channels at various levels, it was decided to closely discuss the stable management of the maritime order in the West Sea and the expansion and deepening of tangible cooperation," the statement said. South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul told a parliamentary committee on April 23 that Seoul was mulling its response, including proportional countermeasures. "The structure is within both Chinese and international law and does not violate the China-South Korea fisheries agreement," the Chinese embassy in Seoul said in a statement in March. The April 23 bilateral meeting on maritime cooperation was attended by officials from the foreign ministries of both countries, alongside other officials. Mr Kang Young-shin, South Korea's deputy director-general for North-east Asian Affairs, and China's director-general for boundary and ocean affairs Hong Liang represented each side, according to Seoul's ministry. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
