{"id":250090,"date":"2025-07-09T06:55:11","date_gmt":"2025-07-09T06:55:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/250090\/"},"modified":"2025-07-09T06:55:11","modified_gmt":"2025-07-09T06:55:11","slug":"trumps-tariffs-may-cast-a-pall-over-marco-rubios-trip-to-asia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/250090\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump’s tariffs may cast a pall over Marco Rubio’s trip to Asia"},"content":{"rendered":"

WASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 Sweeping tariffs set to be imposed<\/a> by President Donald Trump<\/a> next month may cast a pall over his top diplomat\u2019s first official trip to Asia this week \u2014 just as the U.S. seeks to boost relations with Indo-Pacific nations to counter China\u2019s growing influence in the region. <\/p>\n

Trump on Monday sent notice to several countries<\/a> about higher tariffs if they don\u2019t make trade deals with the U.S., including to a number of Asian countries. The move came just a day before Secretary of State Marco Rubio<\/a> planned to depart for a Southeast Asian regional security conference in Malaysia. <\/p>\n

Top diplomats and senior officials from at least eight countries that Trump has targeted for the new tariffs, which would go into effect on Aug. 1, will be represented at the annual Association of Southeast Asian Nations<\/a> Regional Forum in Kuala Lumpur that Rubio will attend on Thursday and Friday.<\/p>\n

State Department officials say tariffs and trade will not be Rubio\u2019s focus during the meetings, which the Trump administration hopes will prioritize maritime safety and security in the South China Sea, where China has become increasingly aggressive toward its small neighbors, as well as combating transnational crime.<\/p>\n

However, Rubio may be hard-pressed to avoid the tariff issue that has vexed some of America\u2019s closest allies and partners in Asia, including Japan and South Korea, which Trump says would face 25% tariffs absent a deal. Neither of those countries is a member of ASEAN but both will be represented at the meetings in Kuala Lumpur.<\/p>\n

Rubio\u2019s \u201ctalking points on the China threat will not resonate with officials whose industries are being battered by 30-40% tariffs,\u201d said Danny Russel, vice president of the Asia Society Policy Institute and a former assistant secretary of state for East Asia and the Pacific during the Obama administration.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn fact, when Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim last week said ASEAN will approach challenges \u2018as a united bloc\u2019 \u2014 he wasn\u2019t talking about Chinese coercion, but about U.S. tariffs,\u201d Russel said.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"From<\/p>\n

From left to right, East Timor Foreign Minister Bendito dos Santos Freitas, Lao Minister of Affairs Thongsavanh Phomvihane, Indonesia\u2019s Foreign Minister Sugiono, Cambodia\u2019s Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn, Brunei\u2019s Minister of Foreign Affairs Erywan Yusof, Malaysia\u2019s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, Malaysia\u2019s Foreign Affairs Minister Mohamad Hasan, Philippine Foreign Secretary Theresa Lazaro, Singapore\u2019s Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan, Thailand\u2019s Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa, Vietnam\u2019s Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son, Myanmar Ministry of Foreign Affairs representative Kyaw Nyun Oo and ASEAN\u2019s Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn pose for the group photo during the opening ceremony of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Foreign Ministers\u2019 meeting and related meetings at the Convention Centre in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP Photo\/Vincent Thian)<\/p>\n

From left to right, East Timor Foreign Minister Bendito dos Santos Freitas, Lao Minister of Affairs Thongsavanh Phomvihane, Indonesia\u2019s Foreign Minister Sugiono, Cambodia\u2019s Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn, Brunei\u2019s Minister of Foreign Affairs Erywan Yusof, Malaysia\u2019s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, Malaysia\u2019s Foreign Affairs Minister Mohamad Hasan, Philippine Foreign Secretary Theresa Lazaro, Singapore\u2019s Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan, Thailand\u2019s Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa, Vietnam\u2019s Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son, Myanmar Ministry of Foreign Affairs representative Kyaw Nyun Oo and ASEAN\u2019s Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn pose for the group photo during the opening ceremony of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Foreign Ministers\u2019 meeting and related meetings at the Convention Centre in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP Photo\/Vincent Thian)<\/p>\n

Read More<\/p>\n

Among ASEAN states, Trump has so far announced up to 40% tariffs on at least six of the 10 members of the bloc, including the meeting host Malaysia, which would face a 25% tariff mainly on electronics and electrical product imports to the United States.<\/p>\n

Southeast Asian countries not yet targeted by the U.S. include Brunei, the Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam, which recently agreed to a trade deal with Trump. The Trump administration has courted most Southeast Asian nations in a bid to blunt or at least temper China\u2019s push to dominate the region.<\/p>\n

In Kuala Lumpur, Rubio also will likely come face-to-face with the foreign ministers of two of America\u2019s biggest adversaries: China and Russia. U.S. officials could not say if meetings with either are planned for the short time \u2014 about 36 hours \u2014 that Rubio will be in Malaysia.<\/p>\n

Russel noted that Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is a veteran of such gatherings and \u201cfluent in ASEAN principles and conventions,\u201d while Rubio \u201cis a rookie trying to sell an \u2018America First\u2019 message to a deeply skeptical audience.\u201d<\/p>\n

Issues with both countries remain substantial, particularly over Ukraine.<\/p>\n

Trump on Tuesday expressed his exasperation with Russian President Vladimir Putin<\/a>, saying, \u201cI\u2019m not happy with him, I can tell you that much right now\u201d as Moscow ramps up attacks in Ukraine amid the American leader\u2019s push for a peace deal. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"President<\/p>\n

President Donald Trump, right, puts his hand on shoulder of Secretary of State Marco Rubio, center, as Attorney General Pam Bondi, left, looks on during a cabinet meeting at the White House, Tuesday, July 8, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo\/Evan Vucci)<\/p>\n

President Donald Trump, right, puts his hand on shoulder of Secretary of State Marco Rubio, center, as Attorney General Pam Bondi, left, looks on during a cabinet meeting at the White House, Tuesday, July 8, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo\/Evan Vucci)<\/p>\n

Read More<\/p>\n

Trump also announced that the U.S. would resume providing Ukraine with defensive weapons<\/a> after the Pentagon announced a surprise pause in some deliveries<\/a> last week.<\/p>\n

U.S. officials continue to accuse China of resupplying and revamping Russia\u2019s military industrial sector, allowing it to produce additional weapons with which it can attack Ukraine.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"WASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 Sweeping tariffs set to be imposed by President Donald Trump next month may cast a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":250091,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5311],"tags":[35150,521,11410,20788,6904,1395,7684,96551,32,5211,4179,5212,3058,1055,96550,2820,285,5214,49,5213,978,659,333,51703,10673,263],"class_list":{"0":"post-250090","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-united-states","8":"tag-anwar-ibrahim","9":"tag-asia","10":"tag-asia-pacific","11":"tag-association-of-southeast-asian-nations","12":"tag-barack-obama","13":"tag-china","14":"tag-china-government","15":"tag-danny-russel","16":"tag-donald-trump","17":"tag-economic-policy","18":"tag-general-news","19":"tag-government-policy","20":"tag-international-trade","21":"tag-malaysia","22":"tag-malaysia-government","23":"tag-marco-rubio","24":"tag-politics","25":"tag-tariffs-and-global-trade","26":"tag-united-states","27":"tag-united-states-government","28":"tag-us","29":"tag-usa","30":"tag-vladimir-putin","31":"tag-wang-yi","32":"tag-washington-news","33":"tag-world-news"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114821970775319975","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/250090","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=250090"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/250090\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/250091"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=250090"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=250090"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=250090"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}