Trump will attend the ASEAN summit in Manila on November 16 before travelling to Shenzhen for the APEC summit in China…reports Asian Lite News Desk
US President Donald Trump will travel to Manila on November 16 to attend the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit before heading to China for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, the White House has said. The visit comes amid strained US-India relations over tariffs and India’s continued purchases of Russian crude oil.
Trump will attend the summit in the Philippine capital before travelling to Shenzhen, China, for the APEC summit, scheduled from November 17 to 19, the White House told the New York Post on Sunday.
The trip aims to demonstrate Washington’s commitment to its Southeast Asian allies and advance US economic and national security objectives, the newspaper reported, citing a White House official.
In China, Trump is expected to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping in person for the third time this year. The two leaders previously met in Beijing in May, followed by Xi’s visit to the White House last month, according to the report.
The Philippines, which chairs ASEAN this year, has declared November 16 to 18 non-working days in Metro Manila to accommodate the 49th ASEAN Summit and related meetings. The gatherings include the East Asia Summit, which brings together India, the United States and other regional powers.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio had indicated in July that Trump was interested in attending the ASEAN summit. Rubio made the remarks while participating in ASEAN foreign ministers’ meetings in Manila.
“I think he’d like to. I don’t know what the schedule looks like,” Rubio told reporters at the time, according to ABS-CBN News.
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. renewed his invitation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend the ASEAN-India Summit and the East Asia Summit when the two leaders met on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in New Delhi in September.
“I look forward to receiving Prime Minister Modi in Manila this November,” Marcos said in a statement following the meeting.
A possible meeting between Modi and Trump in Manila would take place against the backdrop of tensions between Washington and New Delhi over US tariffs and India’s purchases of Russian oil.
Last year, Modi participated virtually in the ASEAN-India Summit in Kuala Lumpur, while External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar represented India at the East Asia Summit. Modi’s decision to stay away ruled out an in-person meeting with Trump, who attended the gatherings.
The two leaders last spoke by telephone on September 30. Modi described the conversation as “productive”.
An immediate point of contention is an October 18 deadline under Section 113 of the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026. The provision requires the US President to raise duties to “up to 100 per cent” on goods from the five largest importers of Russian crude oil or natural gas that continue purchasing these supplies.
India has been among the largest buyers of Russian crude oil since 2022. However, the legislation allows the President to waive the duties if he certifies to Congress that doing so is in the national interest of the United States.
The issue has drawn attention as the Trump administration moves to purchase Russian diesel. New Delhi has previously accused Washington of applying a double standard to trade with Russia.
In August 2025, India’s External Affairs Ministry said the US “continues to import from Russia uranium hexafluoride for its nuclear industry, palladium for its EV industry, fertilisers as well as chemicals”.
ASEAN comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and Timor-Leste.
The East Asia Summit brings together ASEAN members and eight partner countries, including India, the United States, China, Japan and Australia. APEC, meanwhile, is a forum of 21 Pacific Rim economies, of which India is not a member.
