October was particularly lively on the Southeast Asian diplomatic stage. Foreign media disclosed that US President Trump requested that China officials be excluded from two important events.
China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded quickly and clearly expressed its attitude.
The United States is trying to dominate regional affairs and highlight its own influence, and China insists on persuading for reconciliation and promoting multilateral cooperation, a game around Southeast Asia’s diplomatic speech has begun.
Can Trump's request be recognized by Malaysia, the host of the summit?
Trump is "exclusive"
According to the US "Politico News Network" citing anonymous sources familiar with the matter on October 6, Trump plans to travel to Malaysia to attend the 47th ASEAN Summit this month, but only if he can use the summit to showcase his "results of regional diplomacy." To put it bluntly, Hosted the signing ceremony of the peace agreement between Cambodia and Thailand.
Since returning to the White House this year, Trump has repeatedly claimed to have ended seven global conflicts as the "chief peacemaker."
In order to focus entirely on themselves, the White House not only demanded that the ceremony be hosted by Trump, but also specifically pressured Malaysia to exclude Chinese officials from participation.
An anonymous senior U.S. government official even publicly declared that "China has nothing to do with this ongoing peace negotiation", trying to downplay China's previous mediation efforts.
But the fact is the opposite, as early as the Cambodian border conflict broke out in July this year, China had been actively involved in persuading and promoting talks.
Fu Cong, Permanent Representative of China to the United Nations, made it clear at that time that China was playing a mediating role in communication between Cambodia and Thailand and promoting stability of the situation. This position is also consistent with the statement made by Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lin Jian at a regular press conference on October 17.
However, the White House tried to weaken the statement that "attending the meeting is linked to the ceremony" in public, saying that "promoting the peace agreement has nothing to do with attending the summit".
This inconsistent statement highlights the complicated mentality of the Trump administration that it wants to gain political capital through regional affairs, but it is unwilling to fall behind the pretext of "putting pressure on the host".
The “tough situation” in Malaysia
Trump’s demands put Malaysia in a difficult position.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anvar has good reasons to have good interactions with the United States from an economic point of view, after all, the current U.S. tariffs on Malaysian imports of 19%, which is undoubtedly a heavy burden for Malaysia, with electronics and furniture exports as an important economic pillar.
If tariffs continue, Malaysia’s annual economic growth could be pushed down by as much as 1 percentage point in the coming year, so Anvar has always hoped to maintain good relations with the United States, negotiate tariff cuts and reach a new trade deal.
But judging from the domestic political environment, accepting Trump's demands is extremely risky.
The United States' firm support for Israel's military operations in Gaza has aroused strong dissatisfaction among the Malaysian people. Earlier, a large number of protesters gathered outside the U.S. Embassy in Malaysia to express their opposition to the U.S. Middle East policy.
If the Anvar administration “special arrangements” for Trump’s ceremonies, and even excludes China from the meeting, it is likely to be viewed by the public as a “compromise on unpopular American politicians” and trigger greater political pressure.
At present, Malaysian officials have not yet given a clear response. Anwar's office and Malaysia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not respond to media requests for comment.
A government source quoted by the South China Morning Post said: “The signing ceremony for the peace agreement is likely to take place, but it is not yet defined and depends on Thailand’s consent.”
Cambodia-Thailand border issue
The Cambodia-Thailand border is not a simple short-term conflict, but a historical legacy that lasts for more than a century.
Cambodia shares an 817-kilometer land border with Thailand, many of which have never been fully accounted for as sovereign territories, which has also been the root of the conflict between the two countries.
In history, conflicts between the two sides due to border disputes have been common. In 2011, a week-long artillery exchange broke out between the two countries over the sovereignty of border temples, resulting in many casualties among soldiers.
On May 28, 2025, another brief conflict broke out in the disputed border area, resulting in the death of a Cambodian soldier. Subsequently, the two sides increased their troops at the border, triggering a full-blown diplomatic crisis.
On July 2, the conflict escalated to the worst in more than a decade, the two countries' armed forces intensely exchanged fire, accusing each other of leading provocations, and the regional situation was once tense.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar announced that Cambodia and Cambodia had agreed to a ceasefire, while Cambodia's Prime Minister HyunManey, in subsequent statements, especially thanked Anwar, U.S. President Trump and the Chinese government for the "joint mediation".
China's mediation efforts have always been based on the principle of "equal consultation, mutual understanding and accommodation". Lin Jian stressed at the press conference that "Cambodia and Thailand are neighbors who can't move away, and I hope both sides can find a long-term solution acceptable to both sides".
This position is not only in line with the fundamental interests of the two countries, but also highly consistent with ASEAN's tradition of "resolving differences through peaceful means".
From "promoting peace and promoting talks" in the early days of the conflict to promoting "rebuilding mutual trust and consolidating ceasefire" after the ceasefire, China has always played a constructive role in regional peace and stability with pragmatic actions. This is exactly what the Trump administration tried to "downplay" but cannot conceal.
47th ASEAN Summit
The theme of the summit is “Inclusive and Sustainable”, and it is planned to discuss issues such as East Timor’s accession to ASEAN, regional economic cooperation and the situation in the South China Sea.
As an ASEAN dialogue partner, China has been deeply involved in cooperation within the ASEAN framework, such as the Prime Minister’s attendance of the ASEAN, China, and China Summit in May 2025 and promoting the signing of tripartite cooperation documents.
Faced with Trump’s pressure to drive China out, Lin Sword mentioned in his response “supporting Malaysia to play the role of ASEAN rotating presidency.”
This statement implies China's respect for ASEAN's centrality. According to ASEAN practice, leaders of dialogue partner countries (including China) are usually invited to attend summits. The official agenda of the 47th Summit has clearly listed China as a dialogue partner, further confirming the possibility of China participating.
Why is Trump's "ambition" difficult to achieve?
Despite Trump’s frequent efforts to shape the image of a “peacebuilder”, his hopes for the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize are low.
The root reason is that the Norwegian Nobel Committee’s criteria differ significantly from Trump’s style of behavior.
The committee has always focused on “the silent work of lasting peace, promoting international fraternity and multilateral institutions,” and Trump’s past history is largely inconsistent with this.
Not to mention, what Israel has committed in the Gaza Strip has more or less the shadow of the United States behind every stroke.
Some experts pointed out that Trump's withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement, tariffs on allies, and the launch of a trade war are contrary to the Nobel spirit of "promotion of international friendship", and the so-called "peaceful efforts" have not proved to be lasting.
According to media reports, U.S. special envoy for the Middle East, Witkov, directly urged the Norwegian Nobel Committee to award Trump the Peace Prize in August this year. Trump himself even claimed that "not awarding the award is a great insult to the United States".
Witkov and U.S. Secretary of State rubio also secretly lobbied European leaders for support, and Trump personally called Norwegian Finance Minister and former NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg to discuss the matter.
This "pressure-style" struggle is in direct conflict with the Nobel Committee's position of "unwilling to succumb to political pressure".
Edited by: Wood