Xi to Skip ASEAN Summit, Li Qiang to Lead China Delegation

Chinese President Xi Jinping is unlikely to attend the Association of Southeast Asian Nations leaders summit scheduled for 26–28 October in Kuala Lumpur, according to people familiar with the planning. Chinese Premier Li Qiang is expected to lead Beijing’s delegation instead, marking the second time this year Li will represent China at a major ASEAN gathering. Xi’s anticipated absence diminishes prospects for a first in-person meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump during Trump’s second term. Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, this year’s ASEAN chair, had earlier said both leaders were invited and that Trump had confirmed his participation. The summit comes as Washington and Beijing maintain a fragile 90-day extension of their tariff truce while negotiating broader trade issues. Southeast Asian governments, seeking to insulate regional supply chains from escalating U.S.–China tensions, had hoped a face-to-face discussion between the two presidents might ease frictions.