APEC Summit: Trump and Xi Meeting Amidst Trade Tensions and Shifting Global Order

APEC Summit in South Korea

• 🇰🇷 South Korea is hosting the APEC Summit this week in Kongju, bringing together leaders from Pacific Rim nations including the United States, China, and Japan.
• 💡 Since its launch in 1989, APEC has historically been a platform for endorsing free trade and global cooperation, largely driven by the US and its partners.

Shifting Global Trade Landscape

• ⚠️ The current atmosphere is markedly different due to US President Donald Trump's protectionist measures, including sweeping tariffs, which are disrupting the post-war trade order.
• ⚖️ This situation forces host South Korea and other pro-American APEC members into a delicate balancing act.
• 🗣️ South Korean officials suggest the forum might tone down its endorsement of free trade this year, potentially focusing instead on joint statements regarding regional peace, development, and issues like artificial intelligence.

Key Bilateral Meeting: Trump and Xi

• 🤝 The main event at the summit is not the overall APEC gathering, but a bilateral summit between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines.
• ⚔️ Trump and Xi have been engaged in an escalating trade war, with Washington imposing high tariffs and technology controls, and China retaliating with curbs on rare earth shipments.
• 🤔 It remains uncertain whether their summit will help ease the current tensions between the two nations.