Kuala Lumpur (TDI): Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to meet with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi today, as both top diplomats attend the ASEAN foreign ministers’ summit in Malaysia, according to the US State Department.
The high-level meeting comes amid ongoing friction between Washington and Beijing over a wide range of issues, including trade policies, the fentanyl crisis, Taiwan, and sensitive tech exports.
Both Rubio and Wang are in Kuala Lumpur for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit, which has also drawn participation from Japan, South Korea, and Australia.
Relations between the United States and China have become increasingly strained since President Donald Trump returned to office in January.
When Trump returned to office, his administration quickly brought back the bruising trade fight with China.
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Tariffs on Chinese goods were pushed as high as 145%, a move that didn’t go unanswered, China hit back, raising duties on US products to 125%.
The tit-for-tat measures rattled businesses on both sides and added fresh tension to an already strained relationship.
In May, negotiators from both sides met in Geneva and agreed to a temporary rollback of the tariffs.
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Trump hailed the deal as a “total reset,” though observers remain cautious about long-term progress.
Today’s meeting between Rubio and Wang is being closely watched as a potential signal of whether the two powers are prepared to stabilize relations, or resume confrontation in an already tense Asia-Pacific region.
Farkhund Yousafzai is an Associate Editor at The Diplomatic Insight.
