U.S. President Donald Trump is set to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping next week during his Asia trip, the White House confirmed on Thursday, despite recent tensions over trade. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump will depart for Malaysia late Friday night, with stops in Japan and South Korea.
Trump is scheduled to meet Xi on Thursday next week after addressing the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO Summit. Earlier, on Sunday, he will meet Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and attend a working dinner with ASEAN leaders. He will then fly to Tokyo on Monday to meet Japan’s new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Tuesday, before heading to South Korea on Wednesday to meet President Lee Jae Myung, deliver keynote remarks at an APEC CEO luncheon, and attend a U.S.-APEC leaders working dinner.
The meeting comes amid escalating U.S.-China trade tensions, which intensified in early October after China imposed stricter export controls on rare-earth minerals. Trump had threatened retaliatory tariffs but recently expressed optimism about reaching a trade deal.
Trump also indicated his first question to Xi will focus on fentanyl, citing concerns over China’s role in supplying precursor chemicals linked to U.S. overdose deaths. Beijing has defended its record and accused Washington of “blackmail” using the issue.
“I think we’re going to come out very well, and everyone’s going to be very happy,” Trump said ahead of the meeting, marking his first meeting with Xi in his second term.
