The Chinese president’s diplomatic tour has included Vietnam, Cambodia and Malaysia — all targeted by Trump’s tariffs. Experts say Xi wants to establish Beijing as a more reliable partner amid growing uncertainty.
Chinese President Xi Jinping promised more trade cooperation on Wednesday during his ongoing tour of Southeast Asia coming in the wake of the Trump administration’s sweeping tariffs.
Xi held talks with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim at a state dinner at the administrative capital of Putrajaya outside Kuala Lumpur.
He said China would be a collaborative partner and stand alongside its Southeast Asian neighbors at a time of global economic shocks.
“In the face of shocks to global order and economic globalization, China and Malaysia will stand with countries in the region to combat the undercurrents of geopolitical … confrontation, as well as the counter-currents of unilateralism and protectionism,” said Xi, who has promised Malaysia and Vietnam greater market access.
“Together we will safeguard the bright prospects of our Asian family,” he added.
Malaysia’s leader was effusive in his welcome of Xi and issued a thinly veiled criticism against the US under President Donald Trump.
“What we are witnessing today is not an honest reckoning with the imperfections of globalization, but a retreat into economic tribalism. Market access is being weaponized,” Ibrahim said. “In these trying times, the world yearns for steadiness, reliability and a common purpose. We see this in China’s conduct.”
The Malaysian Foreign Ministry said both leaders would sign multiple bilateral agreements. Earlier, Xi met Malaysia’s king, Sultan Ibrahim Iskanda.
Xi tours in Southeast Asia amid US tariff threats
On Monday, Xi held talks with To Lam, Vietnam’s Communist Party General Secretary and Vietnam’s President Luong Cuong.
China and Vietnam signed multiple agreements on cooperation in supply chains and a joint railway project. Xi also promised higher access for Vietnamese agricultural exports to China.
“As beneficiaries of economic globalization, both China and Vietnam should strengthen strategic resolve, jointly oppose unilateral bullying acts, uphold the global free trade system, and keep global industrial and supply chains stable,” said Xi, according to a statement from China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
US President Donald Trump described China and Vietnam’s meeting as an attempt “to figure out how do we screw the United States of America.”
In Malaysia, Xi is expected to discuss a free trade agreement between China and the members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Vietnam and Cambodia are members, and Malaysia is this year’s ASEAN chair.
Oh Ei Sun from the Pacific Research Center of Malaysia think tank told the Associated Press that Xi’s Southeast Asia tour was like “a group of friends huddling together for warmth against harsh weather”.
But China’s territorial claims in the South China Sea are a point of concern with both Vietnam and Malaysia. Malaysian PM Ibrahim stated last year in September that Malaysia will not bow to China’s demands for stopping its oil and gas exploration in the region.
