Trump tells APEC summit: 'I am always going to put America first'
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President Donald Trump has arrived in Vietnam to attend an international economic summit amid regional tensions. Trump touched down Friday in the coastal city of Danang to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit. (Nov. 10)
AP
DA NANG, Vietnam — President Trump brought his complaints about global trade to the world stage on Friday, telling delegates of an Asia-Pacific economic summit that some countries have treated the United States unfairly and pledging to change that.
“I am always going to put America first in the same way I expect all of you in this room to put your countries first,” Trump said at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit.
Claiming that some trading partners are not playing by the rules — but not citing any by name — Trump pledged to crack down on closed markets, predatory practices, currency manipulation, intellectual property theft, and other alleged practices.
As he did in China, a key stop in his 12-day tour of Asia, Trump said he did not blame other countries for taking advantage of the United States — he blamed previous presidents.
“I wish previous administrations in my country saw what was happening and did something about it,” Trump said. “They didn’t. But I will.”
While Trump attended the APEC summit to argue for new trade rules and lobby against North Korea, one potential event fell through: A formal meeting with Russia President Vladimir Putin.
As Air Force One landed midday in this seaside Vietnamese city, White House officials announced that the schedule would not permit a formal meeting between Trump and Putin; they did not rule out an informal chat by the leaders, possibly on North Korea and other issues.
“Are they going to bump into each other and say hello?” said spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders. “Certainly possible and likely. But in terms of a scheduled, formal meeting, there’s not one on the calendar and we don’t anticipate that there will be one.â€
In his speech to the APEC summit, Trump promoted the idea of “free and open Indo-Pacific” region based concepts like “the rule of law, private enterprise, and trade reciprocity.”
Trump spoke to APEC as officials in member countries wonder about the meaning of his “America First” rhetoric and his decision to walk away from a major regional trade deal.
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Some of these officials criticized Trump early in his term for pulling the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a trade deal involving a dozen Pacific Rim nations. The remaining 11 nations are now talking about forming their own trading bloc, without the U.S.
In his speech to APEC, Trump said the United States would no longer engage in big, multi-lateral trade agreements like TPP, saying they undercut national sovereignty. Instead, he said, the U.S. would focus on bilateral, one-on-one trade agreements with individual countries.
Officials in other countries, however, say they are unsure if the Trump administration is very committed to any trade relationship.
“There are going to be questions about how assertive or what exact approach he’s going to take to bilateral economic relations,” said Matthew P. Goodman, senior adviser for Asian economics with the Center for Strategic International Studies in Washington, D.C.
Using language reminiscent of his presidential campaign of a year ago, Trump said other countries use trade rules to take jobs from the United States, particularly manufacturing jobs. Trump made this argument in blighted industrial areas of Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin, the three states that secured his Electoral College win over Hillary Clinton.
Trump also used his APEC speech to talk about another goal of his Asia trip:Â Getting more countries to apply more economic and political pressure on North Korea, while trying to force the reclusive nation to give up its nuclear weapons.
Saying that national security and economic security are linked, Trump also called on the world to rally against “radical Islamic terrorism.”
The APEC summit is the first of three economic conferences that will cap Trump’s trip to Asia.
In the Philippines in a few days, Trump plans to attend an Association of Southeast Asian Nations conference as well as a meeting of the East Asia Summit.
The APEC summit in Vietnam follows a high-profile Trump visit to China.
In addition to asking Chinese President Xi Jinping to pull financial support from North Korea, Trump complained about Chinese trade practices he says have hurt the United States. But, as he would do at APEC, Trump said he didn’t blame China for trade problems, casting responsibility instead on previous administrations.
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President Donald Trump, right, and first lady Melania Trump, left, pose for a photo as they tour the Forbidden City, Wednesday, Nov. 8, 2017, in Beijing, China. Trump is on a five country trip through Asia traveling to Japan, South Korea, China, Vietnam and the Philippines. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) ORG XMIT: TKSK323Â
President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with families of Japanese abducted by North Korea in Tokyo Nov. 6, 2017. They are, from left in front row, Hitomi Soga, Shigeo Iizuka, Abe’s wife Akie, Abe, Trump, U.S. first lady Melania, Sakie Yokota and Akihiro Arimura. Â
First lady Melania Trump, and her Japanese counterpart Akie Abe, third from right, listen to sales manager Hajime Fukuju, left, during their visit Nov. 5, 2017, to Mikimoto Ginza Main Store, Japan’s pearl jewelry maker, at the Ginza shopping district in Tokyo.Â
President Trump, center, salutes, with first lady Melania Trump, top right, uoon arrival at the U.S. Yokota Air Base. On his first to Asia, Trump will visit Japan, South Korea, China, Vietnam and Philippines for summits of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).Â
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