President Donald Trump arrived in Malaysia on Sunday for the start of a nearly weeklong tour of Asia and launched into a diplomatic whirlwind that included a peace deal and agreements on tariffs and critical minerals.
From the moment he arrived on the tarmac in Kuala Lumpur, fists pumping to the music of drummers beating, he seemed intent on presenting a friendly showman's face to a part of the world that has been shaken by his aggressive tariffs.
But aside from the flashy diplomacy, it appeared for the most part that the substance of his administration's approach to its allies in the Indo-Pacific had not changed. And he was leaving huge turmoil in his wake: He sharply cut off trade talks with Canada on the eve of his trip after deploying an aircraft carrier to stalk Venezuela, razing the East Wing of the White House and deploying soldiers to American cities.
After arriving in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday morning, the President spent several minutes relishing the pomp of his arrival ceremony. He mouthed "thank you" to people assembled to see him who were waving American and Malaysian flags, before climbing into his limousine, known as The Beast, with Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim of Malaysia.
Soon after, Trump presided over a peace deal ceremony between Cambodia and Thailand, whose brief war in July is one of more than half a dozen conflicts that he has take credit for ending.
"This is a momentous day for all of the people of Southeast Asia as we sign a historic agreement to end the military conflict between Cambodia and Thailand," Trump said in a speech at the ceremony. Though a ceasefire was signed by the two countries three months ago, Trump said the new deal would lead to the release of 18 Cambodian prisoners of war, a term the Thai Prime Minister said he agreed with.
The accord's signing had been planned for later in the day, but Trump said it would move up to within hours of his arrival. It was the latest example of Trump's efforts to present himself as a peacemaker and negotiator — in hot pursuit of a Nobel Peace Prize he has not been shy about coveting — even as his tariffs have roiled nations and his domestic policy has left the US in turmoil.
The signing ceremony ended with the separate signing of an agreement on reciprocal trade with Cambodia and a memorandum of understanding on critical minerals with Thailand. But neither agreement appeared to considerably change the countries' trade relationship with the US.
Nor did a trade deal between the US and Malaysia that Trump and Anwar also signed on Sunday. In all three cases, the countries' kept the 19 per cent tariff rate that Trump imposed earlier in his term. But the agreements did contain commitments from the three countries to assist the US in containing China, a country that many Southeast Asian countries rely on.
China and the US, the world's two economic superpowers, have been sparring since Trump's return to office. In response to steep US tariffs, China announced this month that it would curb the export of rare earths, of which it has the world's largest supply. Trump vowed to increase tariffs further if it did.
Representatives from China and the US met separately on Sunday to discuss trade between the two countries and came to a "very substantial framework" agreement, Treasury secretary Scott Bessent said on NBC’s Meet the Press. Final decisions about any deal, however, will be determined by Trump and Xi Jinping, China’s leader. The two men are scheduled to meet later in the week in what would be their first face-to-face meeting since Trump returned to the White House.
The White House said in a statement later on Sunday that the US and Vietnam had also agreed to the framework of a trade agreement. The so-called reciprocal tariff on Vietnamese exports would remain 20 per cent.
New York Times News Service