China’s President Xi asks Asian nations to unite against Trump

China’s President Xi Jinping urged Southeast Asian nations to unite as an “Asian family” on Thursday morning, framing regional solidarity this week as the best answer to growing U.S. pressure to curb trade with China.

Xi touched down in the Cambodian capital early in the day, the last stop of his high‑profile three‑nation tour that began Monday. His arrival came as the Trump administration prepared a plan to rally partners to encircle Beijing with coordinated restrictions on Chinese goods.

China’s Xi is on an ally-making circuit

The Chinese leader laid the groundwork a day earlier at a state dinner in Malaysia, where he and Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim oversaw many agreements. “China and Malaysia will stand with countries in the region to combat the undercurrents of geopolitical and bloc‑based confrontation,” 

Malaysia and China then issued a joint statement pledging closer work on industry, supply chains, data, and talent. They vowed to carry out their Five‑Year Programme for Economic and Trade Cooperation and to build what they called a “high‑level strategic Malaysia‑China community.”

Xi sharpened his message in an article printed Thursday by Cambodian media just before he landed. “Together we must stand against hegemonism, power politics,” he wrote, urging Phnom Penh and Beijing to “resolutely oppose any attempts by external forces to interfere in our internal affairs, sow discord.”

Xi referred to the SE nations as “our Asian family”

Xi told guests in Putrajaya. “Together we will safeguard the bright prospects of our Asian family.” His remarks come against the backdrop of an escalating trade war with Washington. Bloomberg reported that the United States is drafting offers of tariff relief for countries that agree to adopt secondary duties on Chinese products.

Last month, President Donald Trump raised levies on a range of Chinese imports to as much as 145%. Beijing answered with tariffs of roughly 125% on U.S. goods.

The clash has left many Southeast Asian governments walking a tightrope, even after a 90‑day pause in new U.S. measures. Xi chose the region for his first overseas trip of the year to keep them from striking deals that could hurt China’s export engine.

Beijing portrayed early success. A Chinese Foreign Ministry readout said Anwar praised Xi as an “extraordinary leader” and voiced firm opposition to independence for Taiwan, the self‑ruled island claimed by China. Anwar, whose country chairs the Association of Southeast Asian Nations this year, also said ASEAN members “will not support any unilateral trade tariffs,” according to the Chinese readout.

Xi began the trip on Monday in Hanoi, where Vietnamese leaders rolled out a red carpet welcome and signed 45 deals aimed at deeper economic links. A joint statement said the two sides “oppose unilateralism” and any acts that threaten regional peace and stability, language similar to past statements but repeated during a week of heightened tension.

With Cambodia now on his agenda, Xi is expected to repeat the same pitch: Asia can prosper, he tells his hosts, if it closes ranks against outside pressure—especially from Washington.

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