Overview

• On July 11 in Kuala Lumpur, U.S. Secretary of State Antony J. Rubio and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held their first bilateral session since January 2025 to revive high-level dialogue
• They agreed to establish a regular diplomatic engagement mechanism and began planning reciprocal state visits by President Trump and Xi Jinping
• At the East Asia Summit, 18 foreign ministers nearly endorsed draft language expressing concern over “global trade tensions” linked to U.S. tariff policies
• Ministers at the ASEAN Regional Forum addressed contested South China Sea territorial claims involving China and several ASEAN members
• Rubio used the gatherings to denounce Beijing’s support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and to highlight sanctions China imposed on him