BEIJING: Chinese President Xi Jinping will make state visits to Vietnam, Malaysia and Cambodia from Monday to Friday (Apr 14 to 18), China’s foreign ministry said.
Xi will be in Vietnam from Apr 14 to 15 at the invitation of To Lam, general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee, and Vietnam President Luong Cuong.
He will then visit Malaysia and Cambodia from Apr 15 to 18 at the invitation of Malaysia’s King Sultan Ibrahim and Cambodia’s King Norodom Sihamoni, a spokesperson from China’s foreign ministry said, as reported by the official Xinhua news agency.
His three-country tour of Southeast Asia comes amid an escalated trade war with the United States and a pledge he made this week to strengthen strategic bonds with neighbouring nations by “appropriately” managing differences and enhancing supply chain ties.
China said on Friday (Apr 11) it would raise tariffs on US goods to 125 per cent – up from 84 per cent – effective Saturday.
It was responding to Washington raising levies on many Chinese imports to 145 per cent, an increase from 104 per cent, even as it announced a 90-day pause on “reciprocal” tariffs on nearly all major trading partners.
The US had imposed reciprocal tariffs of 49 per cent on Cambodia, 46 per cent on Vietnam and 24 per cent on Malaysia.
Analysts have said Xi’s trip is aimed at strengthening regional ties while bolstering Beijing’s reputation as a dependable economic partner.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) said it would not take retaliatory measures in response to US tariffs after the 10-member bloc’s economic ministers met on Apr 10.
US President Donald Trump’s “hardened stance” against China in the tariff war poses “a problem” for ASEAN nations as it will impact their economies, said Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, whose country is chairing ASEAN this year.
ASEAN members need good bilateral and economic ties with the US while ensuring relations with their neighbours, including China, remain “strong and formidable”, he said.
He acknowledged that it would be a “major challenge” to maintain this balance and ASEAN’s centrality, particularly with Xi’s upcoming visit.
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/southeast-asia-xi-jinping-visit-vietnam-malaysia-cambodia-5061351
