Rubio meets PM on sidelines of ASEAN meeting

KUALA LUMPUR: U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday (July 10), as part of his first visit to Southeast Asia since taking office.

AI Brief

The US joined ASEAN talks aiming to renew focus on the Indo-Pacific amid global conflicts.
Trump's steep new tariffs on ASEAN countries and key allies raise tensions.
The tariffs risk undermining diplomatic efforts and US relations in the region.

Earlier, Washington's top diplomat joined foreign ministers of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) at a meeting that included Australia, China, the European Union, Japan, Russia, South Korea and Russia, and others.

The visit is part of an effort to renew U.S. focus on the Indo-Pacific and look beyond conflicts in the Middle East and Europe that have consumed much of the attention of U.S. president Donald Trump's administration.

However, U.S. president Donald Trump's global tariff strategy is likely to cast a shadow over the trip after he unveiled steep tariffs from August 1 on seven ASEAN members, including Malaysia, as well as on close Northeast Asian allies Japan and South Korea.