President Donald Trump is in Tokyo for his first leg of an ambitious five-nation tour of Asia. Trump hopes to reassert America’s power in a region plagued by tensions over North Korea, and lead by increasingly powerful leaders in China and Japan.
In a series of high-stakes bilateral meetings he hopes to convince Asian leaders that the world is “running out of time” on acting on Pyongyang’s nuclear testing, as well as negotiate billion-dollar trade deals.
But the 71-year-old’s inward-looking “America first” policy has many worried that the US will cede regional power to an increasingly dominant China.
Since withdrawing from the US Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) last January - a key regional economic agreement spear-headed by the Obama administration - America’s commitment to the region, as well as its dependability, has come under scrutiny.
That’s not his only challenge. As Trump makes his 13-day journey, Kim Jong-un’s nuclear ambitions loom large. He’s reportedly seething over Trump’s tweets labelling the leader a “Rocket Man” and a threat to “totally destroy” North Korea made during a United Nations speech in September.
But the President seemed unconcerned over a possible North Korean missile test during his travels. “We’ll soon find out!” he said to reporters.
Observers are watching to see how Trump will present himself during his tour: Will he turn heads with undiplomatic rhetoric? Or will we see a measured statesman?
Japan
President Trump’s first meetings have been with newly re-elected Japanese leader Shinzo Abe in Tokyo. Japan is the US’ strongest ally in the region, and the focus of his visit has been reaffirming their historic friendship.
"Japan is a treasured partner and crucial ally of the United States and today we thank them for welcoming us and for decades of wonderful friendship between our two nations," he said from Japan’s Yokota Air Base.
Touting American military might and alluding to the North Korean threat he said: “No one, no dictator, no regime... should underestimate American resolve.”
In addition to receiving US defence equipment, Japan is expected to seek assurances of Washington’s security commitment in Asia. Mr Abe has thrown his support behind Trump's line that "all options," including military action, are on the table.
US President Donald Trump first meetings have been with the Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Source: AAP
South Korea
President Trump will arrive in Seoul on Tuesday and North Korea is top of his agenda with President Moon Jae-in.
He’ll also give a speech to South Korea’s national assembly - the first US president to do so in 25 years - and will break with the tradition of previous US leaders by not paying a visit to the demilitarised zone (DMZ) which divides the two Koreas (an activity one of his aide’s dismissed as a “cliche.”)
President Moon Jae-in rose to power earlier this year on promises to restart dialogue with Pyongyang, but so far his plans to ease tensions with his northern neighbour have reaped little reward.
In the past Donald Trump has taken to Twitter to accuse his South Korean counterpart of “appeasement” in its approach to Pyongyang.
Still Trump will be greeted with a state visit, with Seoul hoping to reaffirm their alliance and maintain the Korea-US free trade agreement - something Trump has made moves to withdraw from.
There are signs that Seoul is angling away from the US, and more toward China, especially as both countries share a pro-dialogue approach to Pyongyang over military action. South Korea hosts the US THAAD missile defence system, which for the past year has been the main source of contention in its relationship with China, which sees the technology a security risk. However, Seoul last week reconciled with Beijing, agreeing to communicate on THAAD via military channels. Both sides will meet at the upcoming APEC forum to build on restored diplomatic ties.
Protests have been held in Seoul in the lead-up to Trump’s arrival. A recent Pew poll found that more than three-quarters of South Koreans consider Trump “dangerous” because of his tendency to antagonise North Korea and go off-script.
China
President Trump will arrive in Beijing on November 8. The US leader is expected to further pressure China, Pyongyang’s main ally, to do more to pressure Kim Jung-un’s regime into stopping the development of its nuclear missile program.
But trade is also very much on the table. In China Trump will be accompanied by a trade delegation, including energy giants General Electric and Honeywell, hoping to seal billion-dollar commercial deals and therefore lower the US trade deficit with China.
But American businesses already dealing with China are more concerned about market access and security issues, long-standing problems which may not be addressed during Trump’s visit.
Aside from formal meetings Trump is scheduled to tour Beijing’s Forbidden City.
Vietnam
In Vietnam President Trump will give a speech at the APEC summit on November 10 in Da Nang. His will address the issue of ‘a free and open Indo-Pacific,’ a slightly awkward choice given more than half the 21 members are a part of the TPP trade pact he exited from.
The US leader has confirmed that he will be meeting Russian leader Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the summit, telling reporters travelling en route from Hawaii to Tokyo “we want Putin's help on North Korea.”
Philippines
President Trump’s last stop will be in the Philippines. He will attend a summit of ASEAN leaders, and will be extending his trip by one day to include the East Asia Summit (EAS) on November 14.
Philippine President Duterte is reportedly a fan of Donald Trump, and told reporters he will deal with Trump “in the most righteous way” in the lead-up to the visit.
The US leader is likely to push for an agreement on freedom of navigation in the South China Sea. President Duterte has strained relations with his ASEAN neighbours by setting aside a favourable ruling from the Hague regarding China’s claims to the disputed waters.
Trump has come under fire for meeting Duterte, a leader responsible for a bloody and controversial war on drugs which has resulted in more than 7000 extrajudicial killings.
