Trump is set to meet Xi Jinping at the APEC summit amid rising trade tensions

President Donald Trump North Korea is leaving for Asia on Friday evening, after it fired a ballistic missile for the first time in months and raised questions about trade negotiations with China.

The White House confirmed that Trump will meet with the Chinese president Xi Jinping Thursday during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit.

The meeting comes amid heightened tensions between the two countries over trade after Beijing announced on October 9. It will impose export controls on rare-earth magnets, which are used in a range of products from electric cars to F-35 fighter jets. In response, Trump announced that the US would impose a new 100% tariff on all Chinese goods, effective November 1.

Nonetheless, Trump has sought to ease tensions and has regularly touted his relationship with Xi in recent weeks. Besides, he believes both parties will walk away from the summit happy and a deal will be struck.

Trump threatens ‘massive’ tariffs on China, ‘no reason’ to meet with XI

The White House confirmed that President Donald Trump will meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit. (Jonathan Ernst/Reuters)

“I think we’re going to come out pretty good and everybody’s going to be very happy,” Trump said Thursday.

The summit between Trump and Xi is the first time they have met in person since Trump took office in January. The two had previously met in person in Japan in June 2019.

Trump’s meeting with Xi will come on the last leg of a major tour of the region. Trump is first heading to Malaysia to meet Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Sunday afternoon before attending the event. Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Dinner in the evening

North Korea launched ballistic missiles days before Trump’s visit to the peninsula

Xi Jinping, President of Brazil, during a news conference with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva at the Alvorada Palace in Brasilia on November 20, 2024. (Ton Molina/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

While in Malaysia, he will also meet Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet and Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul.

After that, Trump will go to Tokyo on Monday and will meet him on Tuesday Japanese Prime Minister Sane TakaichiWho was recently elected in October. Takaichi is the first woman to serve as Prime Minister of Japan.

Trump will then conclude his trip to South Korea, where he will meet with South Korean President Lee Jae-myung and deliver a keynote address at the APEC CEO’s lunch.

Trump announced a meeting with Xi Jinping at the South Korea APEC summit scheduled for next month

President Donald Trump, right, and Chinese President Xi Jinping greet attendees waving American and Chinese flags during a reception outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, Nov. 9, 2017. (Kilai Shen/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Trump is scheduled Return to Washington Thursday.

North Korea, meanwhile, has stepped up its aggression in recent days, firing several short-range ballistic missiles on Wednesday, the first launched by Pyongyang since May. Meanwhile, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un showed off a new intercontinental ballistic missile in a military parade in front of Chinese, Russian and other top officials on October 10.

“We are aware of multiple ballistic missile launches by the DPRK and are closely consulting with the Republic of Korea and Japan, as well as other regional allies and partners,” the US Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM) said in a statement on Wednesday.

“The United States condemns these actions and urges the DPRK to refrain from further illegal and destabilizing acts,” INDOPACOM said. “We have assessed that this incident does not pose an immediate threat to US personnel or the region or our allies, and we are monitoring the situation.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.