
Secretary of State Marco Rubio will travel to Malaysia July 8-12 for meetings of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), marking his first trip to Asia as a State official.
Rubio will seek to highlight U.S. commitment to the region, as relations have been strained by President Trump’s “reciprocal” tariff threats. The administration has struggled to focus on Asia amid the wars in the Middle East and Europe.
Rubio will attend numerous meetings in Kuala Lumpur and is scheduled to meet with senior Malaysian government officials, State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said in a statement Monday.
“During this trip, the Secretary will highlight the strength of our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with ASEAN in delivering results for the American people and the people of Southeast Asia, as well as our commitment to building on our Comprehensive Partnership with Malaysia,” Bruce said.
Rubio reportedly canceled a trip to Japan and South Korea for early July to instead attend a meeting between Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Rubio, who also serves as national security adviser, is part of efforts to achieve a ceasefire and hostage release deal between Israel and Hamas.
Rubio hosted the foreign ministers of Japan, India and Australia — the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue grouping — in Washington last week, raising the administration’s focus on the economy, in particular diversifying supply chains and access to critical minerals necessary for development of technologies and industries.
Rubio’s trip to Asia comes as Trump has again moved goalposts for a self-imposed deadline on reciprocal tariffs — to Aug. 1 — on all of America’s trading partners, including steep penalties set for Asian nations.
While Trump last week announced that a trade deal was struck with Vietnam, the full details have yet to be revealed. The president has criticized Japan as “spoiled” amid negotiations with Asia’s second-largest economy.
Trump is expected to release letters to 12 countries this week outlining new tariff rates in a “take it or leave it” negotiation tactic.