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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Secretary Esper's Remarks to Senator David Perdue (GA) - China

Remarks by President Trump in Cabinet Meeting - North Korea

"I could possibly say a couple of things about North Korea. When I took over — when I became President, North Korea was ready to go to war. We were, I think, headed to a war. It would have been very quickly, too. It would have been a very bad war, a very rough war. But I believe we were headed in that one direction. There was no communication. There was no talk. There were nuclear weapons being — and nuclear everything being tested. Constantly…

Secretary Pompeo's Statement on The New Government of the Kingdom of Thailand

"The United States looks forward to working with the newly formed Royal Thai government to deepen the alliance and partnership between our two nations, building upon over two centuries of friendship between our people. We support transparency and good governance around the world and will continue to work with the Thai people and the Royal Thai government to this end.

The U.S.-Thailand alliance remains strong, and we continue to support Thailand’s role as a regional leader, including its chairmanship of ASEAN this year. Our alliance…

Secretary Esper's Remarks to Senator Tim Kaine (VA) - China and Indo-Pacific Strategy

Remarks by President Trump in Cabinet Meeting - China

"You read yesterday where China is down very substantially. They’re having the worst year they’ve had in 27 years. I don’t want to have them have bad years. But we made a deal and they broke the deal on me. The deal was done. It was practically done. It was just like a very short period of time, we would’ve had it finished. And they broke the deal. They decided they didn’t want to do the things that they had agreed to. So I said…

Secretary Esper's Remarks to Senator Angus King (ME) - China

President Trump's Remarks on Trade with China

Remarks by President Trump at the 3rd Annual Made in America Product Showcase - China

"Previous administrations allowed foreign countries to steal our jobs and plunder our wealth. They stole our wealth. They stole so much, and it was allowed to go on so long. But it’s not going on any longer. You take a look at what’s happening. Look at today’s front page in the Wall Street Journal. You’ll see where China has had its worst year in 27 years. And I’m not looking for that. But we had a deal with China, and they decided not to make…

Secretary Pompeo's Interview With Sean Hannity of The Sean Hannity Show - North Korea and China

"QUESTION: What updates can you give us in terms of China and the trade negotiations, and is there any update with North Korea and Kim Jong-un?

SECRETARY POMPEO: So on North Korea, the President’s visit to North Korea, where he went across into North Korea for the first time a president had done that, has given us another chance to sit down with them and have another conversation. And I hope the North Koreans will come to the table with ideas that they didn’t have…

Secretary Pompeo's Interview With Sebastian Gorka of America First - North Korea

"QUESTION: We could discuss so many things. You had an amazing initiative this week with regards to unalienable rights. I want to talk about that. But for a moment, just for our listeners coast to coast, can you take into the truly historic event where you were with the President the first time that an American president since 1953 stepped across the DMZ? What was it like, Mike Pompeo, to be there for that historic moment?

SECRETARY POMPEO: Sebastian, it was really something. It was…

Remarks by President Trump on Supporting the Passage of the U.S-Mexico-Canada Agreement - China

"For years, politicians let China take the crown jewels out of our country. My administration has taken the toughest-ever stance to stop these incredible abuses. [...]

And I didn’t blame China. I didn’t blame all of these countries — Mexico. Mexico, they took 30 percent of our automobile business. I don’t know if you know that or not. They have plants the likes of which you’ve never seen before. They took 30 percent — probably more than that — of our automobile — I don’t blame…