Rubio’s ASEAN visit overshadowed by Trump’s tariff strategy

AWANI

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio reaffirmed America’s strategic commitment to the Indo-Pacific during his ASEAN visit, emphasizing the region’s role in shaping 21st-century economic growth and global partnerships, but the trip was clouded by President Trump’s announcement of steep tariffs on seven ASEAN nations including Malaysia, as well as key allies Japan and South Korea, raising concerns over trade relations and regional stability.

Transcript

00:00U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the visit to ASEAN is part of an effort to renew U.S. focus on the Indo-Pacific.

00:08However, Trump's global tariff strategy has cast a shadow over the tree after he unveiled steep tariffs from August 1st on seven ASEAN members,

00:16including Malaysia, as well as on close northeast ASEAN, Asian allies, Japan and South Korea.

00:23This is where much of the story of the 21st century is going to be written.

00:27This is where two-thirds of economic growth is going to happen over the next 25 or 30 years.

00:31And many of the countries in Southeast Asia, not only are they some of the youngest countries in the world,

00:36but they're about to see an enormous expansion of their labor markets, their labor pool, number of workers.

00:41This is a historic, once-in-a-generation opportunity, not just for these countries to revolutionize themselves from an economic standpoint,

00:49but further strengthen our relationship.

00:51We have over 6,000 American companies that have invested heavily in these economies over the last 20 or 30 years.

00:58We're not abandoning those relationships.

01:00On the contrary, we want to strengthen and build upon them.

01:02And there are a bunch of other issues, and certainly trade is part of it.

01:05But there are a lot of other issues that we work together on, and we continue to highly prioritize that.

01:11The story of the 21st century will be written in the Indo-Pacific.

01:15And the countries represented here today, along with others that have joined to be a part of this,

01:19represent some of not just important markets, some of the most important partners we have in the world.

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