Viewpoint: Trump-Xi ‘12 out of 10’ summit - What it means for Southeast Asia

2025-10-31

President Donald Trump called his meeting with President Xi Jinping in Busan a “12 out of 10”, signalling a desire to cool tensions with China. But beneath the warm optics, tech controls held firm and strategic rivalry remains. What does this moment mean for Singapore and ASEAN? On Viewpoint, Lynlee Foo speaks to William Choong, Senior Fellow for Regional Strategic and Political Studies Programme at ISEAS to unpack whether Busan marks a genuine reset or just a tactical pause in gre...

President Donald Trump called his meeting with President Xi Jinping in Busan a “12 out of 10”, signalling a desire to cool tensions with China. But beneath the warm optics, tech controls held firm and strategic rivalry remains. What does this moment mean for Singapore and ASEAN?

On Viewpoint, Lynlee Foo speaks to William Choong, Senior Fellow for Regional Strategic and Political Studies Programme at ISEAS to unpack whether Busan marks a genuine reset or just a tactical pause in great-power competition.

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