Rubio and Wang’s first face-to-face meeting since US President Donald Trump returned to office came as Washington and Beijing are locked in disputes ranging from trade to Taiwan – and both powers vie for greater influence in the region.
“I thought it was very constructive and positive meeting,” Rubio told reporters after the hour-long talks, but stressed “it was not a negotiation”.
“I think we left it feeling as there’s some areas we’re gonna be able to work together on.”
Rubio also expressed confidence that a meeting between US President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping would happen.
“There’s a strong desire on both sides to do it,” Rubio said, adding no date had been set.
Wang and Rubio, a long-time China hawk, are in Kuala Lumpur for a gathering of foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which Japan, South Korea and Australia and other nations are also attending.
US officials said ahead of Rubio’s first trip to the region as secretary of state that Washington was “prioritising” its commitment to East and Southeast Asia.
‘Massive deficits’
But US tariffs have overshadowed the three-day conference, and Rubio defended the widespread duties as necessary to rebalance America’s trade relationships.
“If you look at some of these trade deficits, they’re massive. That has to be addressed,” Rubio said at the end of his whirlwind trip.
“Everybody here is a mature leader who understands that that’s not sustainable.”
Trump has threatened punitive tariffs ranging from 20% to 50% against more than 20 countries, many of them in Asia, if they do not strike deals with Washington by Aug 1.
Asean expressed “concern” over tariffs, which it described as “counter-productive” and a threat to regional growth, according to a joint communique released today.
Long-time US ally Japan faces a 25% across-the-board levy, separate from similar charges for cars, steel and aluminium that have already been imposed.
Seoul faces a similar tariff.
Earlier today Rubio met his Japanese and South Korean counterparts, with his spokesman Tammy Bruce calling it an “indispensable relationship”.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, however, said this week that tariffs were being used as “sharpened instruments of geopolitical rivalry”.
Wang yesterday said the US tariff drive “undermines the free trade system”.
“The US’ imposition of high tariffs on Cambodia and Southeast Asian countries is an attempt to deprive all parties of their legitimate rights to development,” Wang said.
Tensions between Washington and Beijing have ratcheted up since Trump took office in January, with both countries engaging in a tariff war that briefly sent duties on each other’s exports sky-high.
‘Total reset’
At one point the US hit China with additional levies of 145% on its goods as both sides engaged in tit-for-tat escalation.
China’s counter-measures on US goods reached 125%.
Beijing and Washington agreed in May to temporarily slash their staggeringly high tariffs – an outcome Trump dubbed a “total reset”.
However, deep mistrust remains between the two countries, with each suspecting the other of trying to weaken its influence.
US defence secretary Pete Hegseth accused China in late May of “credibly preparing to potentially use military force to alter the balance of power” in the Asia-Pacific region.
He also claimed that Beijing “trains every day” to invade Taiwan, which China claims as part of its territory.
In response, Chinese diplomats accused the US of using the Taiwan issue to “contain China” and called on Washington to stop “playing with fire”.