US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will meet in Malaysia today. Both leaders are participating in the ASEAN Regional Forum in Kuala Lumpur, which includes 10 ASEAN countries along with major partners like the US, Russia, China, Japan and South Korea. This meeting is taking place at a time when the US has again started supplying weapons to Ukraine. Earlier, the Pentagon had stopped the supply for some time to review the domestic weapon stockpile, which Russia considered its diplomatic victory. President Donald Trump said in a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Putin is not treating humans properly. Many people are losing their lives. That is why we have approved sending some defense weapons to Ukraine. Trump took a tough stand against Putin According to AP report, Trump also attacked Russian President Vladimir Putin in the cabinet meeting. He said, Putin tells us lies every time. He speaks very sweetly, but it does not mean anything. Trump said that he wants to end the war soon but peace talks are not progressing because of Putin. Trump has warned Russia about sanctions related to the oil industry. He also said that he is considering a proposal under which 500% tariff will be imposed on countries like India and China which buy Russian oil. This is the first official visit of US Secretary of State Rubio to Asia. But it is facing a tough challenge due to US tariff threats. President Trump has recently warned many countries that if they do not enter into trade agreements with the US, heavy tariffs will be imposed on them from August 1. These include 8 out of 10 ASEAN countries. However, according to the State Department, Rubio’s focus will not be on trade but on maritime security and trans-national crime in the South China Sea. Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim warned in the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ meeting that global trade has now become a weapon and due to US tariff threats, it has become necessary to strengthen regional trade. Threat of heavy tariffs on ASEAN countries According to reports, Trump has sent tariff notices to Brunei and the Philippines on Wednesday. Brunei’s goods will be charged 25% duty and Philippines’ 20% duty. Vietnam has recently reached an agreement with 20% tariff, while Singapore was left out of the first list in April. Malaysia’s Trade Minister Zafrul Aziz has said that they are ready for talks but will not compromise on issues like US government procurement, halal certification, medical standards and digital tax.
