Donald Trump, the President of the U.S., arrived in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on the morning of October 26, kicking off his five-day official tour of Asia.
The itinerary includes visits to three countries: Malaysia (October 26-27), Japan (Monday to Wednesday), and South Korea (Wednesday to Thursday). The tour’s highlights are expected to be the U.S.-South Korea and U.S.-China summits, coinciding with the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in South Korea. If a surprise meeting occurs between Trump and Kim Jong Un, it would likely be the pinnacle of the trip.
According to the White House, Trump departed from Andrews Joint Base in Maryland aboard Air Force One at approximately 11:15 p.m. on October 24. During the journey, Air Force One made refueling stops at Ramstein Air Base in Germany and Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar.
While in Qatar, Trump briefly met with Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani aboard Air Force One. He then departed for Kuala Lumpur around 10:00 p.m. local time on October 25. After about seven hours of flight, he is scheduled to arrive in Kuala Lumpur at 10:00 a.m. on October 26, Malaysia time. Secretary of State Marco Rubio joined Trump aboard Air Force One in Qatar.
Upon his arrival in Malaysia on the afternoon of October 26, Trump will officially begin his schedule with an expanded summit with Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim at 2:30 p.m. He is also set to attend a signing ceremony for a peace agreement between Thailand and Cambodia, followed by a working dinner with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) leaders that evening.
The ASEAN summit will feature leaders from nine of the ten member countries, excluding Myanmar due to sanctions. Attendees include Trump, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, Chinese Premier Li Qiang, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.
On Monday, Trump will head to Japan, where he plans to meet Emperor Naruhito and hold bilateral talks with Prime Minister Takaichi on Tuesday. During the flight to Malaysia, Trump spoke with Takaichi by phone, describing the conversation as really good. He added that she was lovely, and they will meet again soon. Noting that he was close with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
The climax of Trump’s Asian tour will be his schedule in South Korea, the final country on his itinerary.
Trump will enter South Korea through Busan on Wednesday and will hold a summit with President Lee in Gyeongju, where the APEC summit will take place. On Thursday, he will meet face-to-face with Chinese President Xi Jinping for the first time since beginning his second presidential term.
There is significant interest in whether they will reach an agreement on a 350 billion USD investment deal with South Korea. Trump stated shortly after departing Maryland on October 24 that they are very close to finalizing the tariff and trade negotiations with South Korea, saying that if they are ready, he’s ready.
The U.S.-China summit scheduled for Thursday in Busan will likely focus on ways to ease the trade war between the two nations, discussing tariffs and export controls, as well as a request for U.S. cooperation to end the Russia-Ukraine war.
When asked by a reporter during the flight from Qatar to Malaysia about discussing Russian oil purchases with Xi, Trump replied that they might discuss it. Regarding his expectations for the meeting with Xi, he expressed hope for a complete deal, stating that he wants the farmers to be taken care of, and they will discuss the fentanyl issue. He see this as a very good opportunity to achieve a comprehensive agreement.
A particularly noteworthy aspect of Trump’s visit to South Korea is the potential for a surprise meeting with North Korean leader Kim.
On October 24, while aboard Air Force One, Trump referred to North Korea as a Nuclear Power and mentioned the possibility of meeting Kim at the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), stating that if Kim contacts him, he will meet Kim.
During his first term in June 2019, Trump proposed a meeting via Twitter and became the first sitting U.S. president to step onto North Korean soil by meeting Kim at Panmunjom.