United States President Donald Trump has confirmed his attendance at the 47th Asean Summit, scheduled to be held in Kuala Lumpur this October.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim made the announcement during his speech tabling the 13th Malaysia Plan in Parliament today.
The confirmation came following an official invitation extended to Trump through US Secretary of State Marco Rubio during his courtesy visit to the Prime Minister’s Office on July 10.
The last US president to visit Malaysia was Barack Obama, who was in the country twice during his tenure - in April 2014 and then in November 2015.
In his speech in Dewan Rakyat today, Anwar also revealed that Trump will announce new tariffs on Malaysian goods tomorrow (Aug 1).
On July 8, the US announced a blanket 25 percent tariff on all Malaysian products, which would be separate from existing sectoral tariffs and is one percent higher than the rate announced in April.
Trump’s planned attendance at the Asean summit would have far-reaching geopolitical, diplomatic, and domestic implications for the region.
His presence may be seen as a counterweight to China’s growing influence, especially since China has intensified bilateral and regional ties with Asean. - FMT
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