President Donald Trump visited Asia for the first time this term, a trip in which he is expected to work on investment deals and peace efforts before meeting face-to-face with China’s president. Xi Jinping to try to defuse a trade war.
“We have a lot to say with President Xi, and he has a lot to say with us,” Mr. Trump told reporters Friday evening as he left the White House. “I think we’ll have a good meeting.”
The president will take a long-haul flight to Malaysia on Sunday morning, the first leg of a three-country visit.
Aboard Air Force One on Saturday, Mr. Trump told reporters he might discuss his Russian oil purchases with Xi. He said China was slashing future purchases after the United States imposed sanctions on Moscow’s two biggest oil companies. China’s national oil companies will refrain, at least in the short term, from buying Russian oil, Reuters reported last week.
Asked when he hoped to achieve an outcome in the meeting with China, the president replied: “I think a deal is done.”
“I want us to take care of our farmers, and he wants things too. We’re going to talk about fentanyl,” Mr. Trump said on Saturday. “I think we have a very good chance of reaching a very comprehensive agreement.”
Mr. Trump met with Qatar’s emir and prime minister on Saturday aboard Air Force One during a refueling stop in that country. The Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, said that as soon as he learned of the president’s visit to Qatar, he wanted to have a conversation.
Mr Trump thanked the Emir and Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani for bringing “peace to the Middle East”, after serving as intermediaries during the war. Peace agreement between Israel and Hamascalling them a “great ally”.
His trip comes as US government shutdown drags on. Many federal workers are expected to miss their first full paycheck this week, there are flight disruptions as already harried air traffic controllers work without pay, and states face the possibility that federal food aid will dry up. While Republicans reject Democratic demands to expand health care tax credits, there is no sign of a break in the impasse. But Mr. Trump himself appears to be maintaining his usual approach, including undertaking this latest foreign trip.
“America is shut down and the president is leaving town,” said Chuck Schumer, Democratic leader in the New York Senate.
Mr Trump’s first stop will be at a regional summit in Kuala Lumpur. Trump has attended the annual Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit only once during his first term, but this year it comes as Malaysia and the United States work to resolve a skirmish between Thailand and Cambodia.
On Sunday, he is scheduled to meet Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, followed by a joint signing ceremony with the prime ministers of Thailand and Cambodia.
Mr. Trump threatened earlier this year to suspend trade deals with those countries if they did not stop fighting, and his administration has since worked with Malaysia to reach an expanded ceasefire.
From there, Mr. Trump will travel to Japan and South Korea, where he is expected to advance negotiations for at least $900 billion in investments in U.S. factories and other projects those countries are committed to in exchange for softening Trump’s plans. duty rate up to 15% versus 25%.
This trip to Tokyo comes a week after Japan elected its first female Prime Minister, Sanae Takaichi. Trump is expected to meet with Takaichi, a protégé of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Mr. Trump was close to Abe, who was assassinated after leaving office.
Mr Trump said Takaichi’s relationship with Abe was “a good sign” and “I look forward to meeting her”.
During his stay, Mr. Trump is expected to be greeted by Japanese Emperor Naruhito and meet American troops stationed in Japan, according to a senior U.S. official who was not authorized to speak publicly and spoke to reporters on condition of anonymity about the planned trip.
In South Korea, Mr. Trump is expected to hold a highly anticipated meeting with Chinese Xi on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit.
While the APEC summit is expected to be held in Gyeongju, the Trump-Xi meeting is expected to take place in Busan, according to the US official.
The meeting follows months of volatile movements in a trade war between China and the United States, which have shaken the global economy.
