Rubio confirmed plans for a Trump-Xi meeting to keep moving despite election interference accusations, with July 22-23 talks at the ASEAN ministers’ meeting in Manila seen as groundwork for a possible September summit.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Chinese President Xi Jinping’s planned trip to the United States remains on track despite Trump administration accusations that Beijing interfered in the election, while Rubio is also due to meet Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Manila during the July 22-23 ASEAN foreign ministers’ meeting to prepare a possible September Trump-Xi summit. Rubio gave no dates or agenda for Xi’s U.S. visit, but the comments and the Manila meeting indicate Washington wants to preserve high-level engagement with Beijing even as the relationship remains strained by election claims, trade disputes, technology restrictions and broader financial-policy tensions. The broader backdrop includes China’s digital yuan expansion and ASEAN’s Digital Economy Framework Agreement negotiations, while market participants are watching for any post-meeting signals on trade, technology transfer or financial sanctions.