Trump, Putin Lead Asia Summit Talks on Trade, AI, Security
Three summits in five days will test global talks on trade, AI and security, from Manila to Shenzhen.
Trump , Putin – (Special Correspondent/Web Desk) – World leaders are heading to Asia for a busy week of talks on trade, AI and security. Three summits will take place in just five days, and each one carries high stakes.
The Asean leaders’ summit opens on Sunday in Manila. It is the final Asean gathering of the year. At the same time, French President Emmanuel Macron will attend a Francophonie summit in Phnom Penh.
The focus then shifts to the APEC conference in Shenzhen, China. Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to be a key figure there. India’s Narendra Modi will join the Asean meeting. US President Donald Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney plan to attend both events.
Trump recently lost badly in the midterm elections. Even so, analysts say Asia will not see him as a weak leader. Siew Mun Tang, a former head of the Asean Studies Centre, said Trump still has two more years in office and can do a lot.
A Xi, Trump and Putin meeting
A proposed meeting between Xi Jinping, Trump and Putin will draw the most attention. Its agenda is still unclear. Putin wants to talk about Ukraine. Trump says the focus will be nuclear arms and ending the war in Iran.
Experts are cautious. Ryan Hass of the Brookings Institution said the symbolism will matter as much as the substance. He expects only broad principles, with no firm follow-up. Wang Wen of Renmin University also thinks talks may end without a breakthrough.
A hoped-for meeting with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un looks unlikely, as Pyongyang has turned down repeated offers.
AI safeguards in focus
AI will be a hot topic at APEC. In September, Xi and Trump agreed to set up a channel to report AI incidents. Both countries share worries about bioweapons and attacks on key infrastructure.
Analysts say APEC could build on that deal. Still, one expert called a hotline cheap diplomacy, easy to announce and easy to ignore. A spying scandal involving Nvidia boss Jensen Huang may also cast a shadow over the AI talks.
Sea dispute and trade worries
In Manila, the Philippines is unlikely to sign a South China Sea Code of Conduct with China this year. A diplomat involved in the preparations expects no deal. Some experts say the code may have lost its purpose.
Trade will be a major topic at both summits, but relief from tariffs looks unlikely. A pause in the China-US trade war runs until January 10. Tension remains over Chinese rare-earth exports. Experts say tariff changes would be hard to reverse without new laws.
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