The Trump Administration & US - Indo-Pacific Relations

This resource tracked statements, developments, visits, and other interactions in US-Indo-Pacific relations under the President Trump administration. Special focus was given to the comments and activities of President Donald J. Trump; Vice President Mike Pence; United States Trade Representative Ambassador Robert E. Lighthizer; Secretary of State Mike Pompeo; Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, Jr.; former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson; former Secretary of Defense James Mattis; and former Secretary of Defense Dr. Mark Esper.

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President Trump's Remarks Before Marine One Departure - China

Q Were you concerned about the way that China treated Secretary Pompeo when he was there on this most recent visit?

THE PRESIDENT: No. They’re just trying to get me a message. But those messages don’t work. They don’t work. But no, I think they treated him with great respect, actually. You know, they had meetings besides just the news conference. And I think they treated him with great respect.

He had a great meeting with North Korea. And China, it’s — it wasn’t so…

President Trump's Remarks at Rally in Iowa - South Korea

Secretary Pompeo's Meetings in Beijing, China

"On October 8, Secretary of State Pompeo met separately with Member of the Political Bureau and Director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China Yang Jiechi and State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing. They discussed the overall state of the bilateral relationship.

The two sides affirmed the importance of a constructive, results-oriented bilateral relationship. The Secretary directly addressed ‎areas where the United States and China do not agree, including on the…

Remarks With Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi Before Their Meeting

"Thank you, Foreign Minister Wang. Thank you for welcoming me to Beijing. I did indeed want to come here to have discussions (inaudible) the issues that you’ve characterized we have a fundamental disagreement. We have grave concerns about the actions that China has taken, and I look forward to having the opportunity to discuss each of those today because this is an incredibly important relationship.

I do want to share with you my visit with Chairman Kim Jong-un yesterday and the progress we’ve made, and…

Secretary Pompeo's Remarks With Chinese Director of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission Office Yang Jiechi Before Their Meeting

"Director Yang, it’s good to see you. Thank you for hosting me today. I appreciate it. I look forward to a good conversation. As you said, there are many issues, places where we have disagreements, and it is worthy and important that we listen to each other and work through them to find constructive solutions so that we can get a good outcome for the two of our countries.

I’m pleased to share with you the work that I did this past couple of days…

Secretary Pompeo's Meetings in Seoul, Republic of Korea

"Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo visited Seoul October 7-8 and met with President Moon and Foreign Minister Kang to give a readout of his October 7 trip to Pyongyang. Secretary Pompeo briefed on his meeting with Chairman Kim, which included his introducing Chairman Kim to Special Representative for North Korea Biegun as his chief negotiator, plans for a second U.S.-DPRK summit, and discussions on achieving the commitments of the June Singapore Summit including the final, fully verified denuclearization of the DPRK as committed to…

Secretary Pompeo's Meetings in Pyongyang, Democratic People's Republic of Korea

"Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo held productive discussions with Chairman Kim Jong-un in Pyongyang Sunday. They discussed the four elements contained in the U.S.-DPRK Singapore Summit Joint Statement signed by President Trump and Chairman Kim. They also discussed the upcoming second summit between President Trump and Chairman Kim and refined options for the location and date of that next summit.

Secretary Pompeo was joined by Special Representative Stephen E. Biegun and Chairman Kim was joined by Kim Yo-jong, First Vice Director of the Korean…

Secretary Pompeo's Remarks With South Korean President Moon Jae-in

"First of all, thank you. Thank you for hosting me, President Moon. It’s great to be here. It was important that I come here tonight on my visit today. You all have been an incredibly important part of the success that we have all had to date, but what we all hope will be the denuclearization and the change in the relationship here on the peninsula. And then, two, I don’t have much to add. I will certainly tell you in private about our conversation…

Secretary Pompeo's Meetings in Tokyo, Japan

"Secretary Pompeo met today with Japanese Prime Minister Abe and Foreign Minister Kono in Tokyo to discuss next steps on DPRK engagement. They reaffirmed our commitment to the final, fully verified denuclearization of the DPRK, and agreed that pressure must continue until the DPRK denuclearizes. Both sides affirmed the strength of the U.S.-Japan Alliance and vowed to continue working closely together to address common challenges in the Indo-Pacific."

Secretary Pompeo's Remarks With Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe

"Mr. Prime Minister, thank you. Mr. Prime Minister, thank you for hosting me here; I know it's a Saturday. I appreciate you and your team spending time with my team as well. We think it’s very important, and we expect it will be very productive. It’s important for us to hear from you as we – as I travel to Pyongyang to make sure that we’re fully in sync with respect to missile programs, the CBW program. We will bring up the issue of the…

Secretary Ross's Op-Ed: Leveling the Playing Field for American Workers - China

"In addition, we are prioritizing enforcement actions that address unfair Chinese trade practices. On August 28, 2018, the Trump Administration announced its 39th investigation into unfairly traded Chinese goods. It took the Obama Administration three years to reach this milestone. And, for the first time in over 25 years, the Commerce Department self-initiated trade cases on Chinese aluminum sheet exports.

To address the flood of imports that threaten domestic industries critical to the security of our nation, the Department has launched investigations under Section 23…

Secretary Pompeo's Call With Maldives President-elect Solih

"Secretary Michael R. Pompeo spoke by phone today with Maldivian President-elect Ibrahim Solih to congratulate him on his recent electoral victory. The Secretary congratulated the Maldivian people for coming out to vote in overwhelming numbers despite challenges. The Secretary noted that the election reflected the will of the Maldivian people, which all parties in the country should respect. He said the United States looks forward to President-elect Solih’s inauguration in November and expanding U.S. cooperation with Maldives in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific."