President Donald Trump’s strategy of using Southeast Asian nations as an economic “wall” against Chinese exports has attracted renewed attention after the apparent finalization of a U.S.-Vietnam

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Thursday that Asian nations might get “better” tariff rates than the rest of the world. He was attending ASEAN talks focused on Washington’s trade war. Rubio’s visit to Malaysia came after US President Donald Trump threatened this week to impose punitive tariffs on more than 20 countries.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio met counterparts in Southeast Asia during his first visit to the region since taking office.

Mark Rubio, acting National Security Advisor and Secretary of State, defended President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs on Friday, telling regional leaders that many Southeast Asian nations could ultimately benefit from lower rates than other parts of the world,

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has warned that global trade is being weaponized as U.S. tariffs loom over Southeast Asia

Since 2016, the share of U.S. imports from China has fallen by nearly half, while imports from the Association of Southeast Asian

Donald Trump’s latest act of trade brinkmanship risks creating a “tariff wall” around the manufacturing hubs of south-east Asia, leading to higher prices and tough choices for US consumers and industry, analysts warn.