Rubio open to Russia, China meets

Joint Base Andrews (AFP) — United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Sunday he was open to meeting with his Chinese and Russian counterparts this week while in the Philippines for a meeting of Southeast Asian foreign ministers.

Rubio’s attendance at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) gathering in Manila comes as the United States seeks to counter China’s growing regional influence and days after President Donald Trump accused Beijing of meddling in US elections.

“We’d be open to meeting with them,” Rubio told reporters when asked if meetings with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi or Russia’s Sergei Lavrov were in the works.

“I would never tell you guys in a press conference what we would raise in meetings like that. Those are delicate matters,” he added.

Rubio met Wang on the sidelines of the ASEAN gathering in Kuala Lumpur last year. The two also spoke by telephone following Trump’s visit to China in the spring.

The Philippines trip, Rubio’s first to the country as secretary of state, comes as regional allies are under economic strain caused by the rekindled US-Iran war.

The US diplomat on Sunday called ASEAN “our primary way of engaging the region,” adding he would participate in a host of bilateral meetings, as well as sit-downs with fellow Quad members India, Japan and Australia.