Michelle ThompsonChina’s President Xi Jinping has urged Vietnam to stand against “unilateral bullying” in support of a global free trade system, though he refrained from directly naming the U.S.
Xi’s comments come as part of a diplomatic tour across Southeast Asia, including visits to Malaysia and Cambodia. While the trip was pre-scheduled, it has gained extra significance amid the escalating trade conflict between the U.S. and China. Vietnam was previously facing U.S. tariffs as high as 46%, but the Trump administration paused these measures for 90 days last week.
U.S. President Donald Trump dismissed Xi’s meeting with Vietnamese leaders as a tactic to figure out how to “screw the United States.”
According to Chinese state media outlet Xinhua, Xi told Vietnam’s Communist Party Secretary-General To Lam to “jointly oppose unilateral bullying.”
“We must strengthen strategic resolve… and protect the stability of the global free trade system and industrial and supply chains,” Xi said.
Stephen Olson, a former U.S. trade negotiator, described Xi’s remarks as a “shrewd tactical move.”
“While Trump seems set on dismantling the trade system, Xi is positioning China as the defender of rules-based trade, portraying the U.S. as a reckless rogue nation,” he added.
Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office on Monday, Trump claimed that while he doesn’t blame China or Vietnam, they appear focused on undermining the U.S.
“That’s a lovely meeting. Meeting like, trying to figure out, how do we screw the United States of America?” Trump remarked.
The trade war between the world’s two largest economies continues to escalate, with Trump’s administration imposing a 145% tariff on most Chinese imports earlier this month. In response, China imposed 125% tariffs on American goods entering the country.
A U.S. customs notice released Saturday stated that smartphones, computers, and some electronic devices would be excluded from the 125% tariffs on imports from China. However, Trump later denied these exemptions on social media, calling the reports false and explaining that the products would be moved to a different tariff category.
A “golden opportunity” for Xi.
Xi arrived in Hanoi on Monday, where he was greeted by well-wishers waving Chinese and Vietnamese flags. He then met with top Vietnamese officials, including Secretary-General and Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh.
On Tuesday, Xi visited the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, where he participated in a wreath-laying ceremony at the resting place of the former Vietnamese leader and Communist founder.
Despite Xi’s visit, Vietnam remains cautious about “managing the perception that it is colluding with China against the United States,” as the U.S. remains too significant a partner to ignore, according to Susannah Patton, Director of the Southeast Asia Program at the Lowy Institute think-tank.
“China is both an economic competitor and partner for Southeast Asian economies,” Patton added.
Having concluded his visit to Vietnam, Xi is scheduled to arrive in Malaysia later on Tuesday, where he is expected to meet with the country’s King and Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. This visit follows the announcement that Malaysian mobile data service U Mobile will launch the country’s second 5G network using infrastructure technology from China’s Huawei and ZTE.
Patton predicts that Xi will continue portraying the U.S. as “an unreliable, protectionist partner,” while contrasting China as a reliable one.
“Now is truly a golden opportunity for China to win that narrative,” Patton said. “This is likely how Xi’s trip to Vietnam, Cambodia, and Malaysia will be viewed.”
