Donald Trump begins an important tour of Asia on Friday, October 24, which will be marked by a highly anticipated meeting with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, which poses great challenges for the world economy.
However, despite widespread speculation, an interview with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is not on the agenda for the US president’s trip to Asia, his first to this region since his return to power in January.
“The president, of course, has expressed his desire to meet with Kim in the near future. That is not on the agenda for this trip,” which includes stops in Malaysia, Japan and South Korea, a U.S. official told reporters on condition of anonymity.
Earlier on Friday, South Korean Unification Minister Chung Dong-young said he believed there was a “strong possibility” that the US president would meet the North Korean leader during his visit to the peninsula next week.
“Series of economic agreements”
Donald Trump will leave Washington on Friday night at 10:40 p.m. (04:30 on Saturday, French time) to Kuala Lumpur, where he will participate on Sunday in the summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which he disdained several times during his first term.
All host countries should roll out the red carpet for Donald Trump to try to curry favor and obtain the best possible deals on customs duties and security guarantees.
A senior US official said Friday that Donald Trump “will deliver on his promises to the American people in one of the most economically dynamic regions in the world, signing a series of economic deals,” particularly on rare earths.
In Kuala Lumpur, President Trump is expected to conclude a trade deal with Malaysia and, most importantly, witness the signing of a peace agreement between Thailand and Cambodia.
After a conflict that lasted several days, the two neighbors signed a ceasefire on July 29, after an intervention by Donald Trump. A meeting with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is also planned during the ASEAN summit.
The two leaders began to iron out their differences after months of tensions linked mainly to the trial and conviction of former far-right Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro, an ally of the White House tenant.
“Frank discussions”
Donald Trump will travel to Japan on Monday, where he will meet the next day with the nationalist Sanae Takaichi, who this week became the first woman to assume the head of the Japanese Government. The latter said she wanted “frank discussions” with the American president. Tokyo signed a trade deal with Washington this summer, but certain details remain to be discussed.
But the highlight of the tour will take place in South Korea, where Donald Trump is expected to participate starting next Wednesday in a summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum (Apec), on the sidelines of which he will meet with Xi Jinping in Gyeongju, scheduled for Thursday.
The Republican leader had briefly left doubts about this meeting, while the two largest economies on the planet compete fiercely on a commercial level, but the White House confirmed this week that it would indeed take place.
Donald Trump said he hoped to reach an agreement with the Chinese president on “all issues,” although his main intention was to “discuss the economic and trade relationship,” according to the senior US official cited above.
The meeting should not constitute “a turning point” in the relationship between the two leaders, Ryan Hass, a researcher at the American think tank Brookings, predicted to AFP.
The US president will also meet during this summit with his South Korean counterpart, Lee Jae Myung, will give a speech to businesspeople and will participate in an Apec leaders’ dinner, according to the White House.
Source: BFM TV
