Chinese President Xi Jinping is scheduled to visit Vietnam, Malaysia, and Cambodia in mid-April, marking his first overseas trip of the year, according to a report in the South China Morning Post, as per Bloomberg.
Sources familiar with the matter indicate that plans are underway for Xi to spend three days in Malaysia during the visit.
Xi’s trip comes as Beijing seeks to solidify relationships with regional partners amid the ongoing trade war initiated by US President Donald Trump. Both Vietnam and Malaysia face the prospect of higher tariffs from the United States, with reciprocal duties expected to be implemented this week.
As Trump disrupts traditional partnerships, top Chinese officials have been positioning their nation as a force for stability. Simultaneously, Beijing has increased pressure on US allies in the Indo-Pacific region. Last month, China conducted live-fire drills in the Gulf of Tonkin after Vietnam announced a new boundary line in waters it considers its territorial. Both countries have longstanding disputes in the nearby South China Sea.
Xi’s visit to Cambodia is expected to follow the official inauguration of a naval port in the country, the expansion of which has been supported by Beijing. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet is scheduled to open the Ream Naval Base on April 2.
The US has expressed concerns that the naval base could potentially become China’s first military outpost in the Indo-Pacific region. However, Beijing has dismissed these claims.
