US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will make his first visit to Asia this week, traveling to Malaysia for a meeting of Southeast Asian nations (ASEAN), the State Department announced.

The trip to Kuala Lumpur on Thursday and Friday

(July 10 and 11) will give the US Secretary of State, who is also National Security Advisor, an opportunity to rebuild ties with the Asia-Pacific region at a time when Donald Trump's US has been heavily engaged since January in the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East.

“During his first trip to Asia as secretary of state, Rubio will seek to reaffirm the US commitment to promoting a free, open, and secure Indo-Pacific region,” State Department spokeswoman Tammy Brice said, quoted by AFP.

As with any trip by a US official to Asia, China will be in the background, if not at the forefront, of discussions, amid concerns over Beijing's actions in the South China and East China Seas, which are considered “provocative,” and China's growing global influence.

This visit also comes at a time when many countries are waiting to find out whether punitive tariffs, which were suspended for 90 days by the US president, will be imposed.

In Kuala Lumpur, the US Secretary of State will meet with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi. | BGNES