The meeting takes place on the sidelines of a Southeast Asian summit, where Washington and Beijing are each attempting to exert their influence.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Thursday that the U.S. and Russia have exchanged new ideas for Ukraine peace talks after he met with his Russian counterpart in Malaysia Thursday. “I think it’s a new and a different approach,

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he’s working on setting up a meeting with his Chinese counterpart at a summit in Malaysia this week, the first in-person session between the two and a possible prelude to a presidential summit.

The U.S. Secretary of State wants to bolster defense ties in the Indo-Pacific, while distrust of Trump’s commitments to the region, particularly on economic issues, runs deep.

The discussion in Malaysia follows Trump’s harsh criticism of Putin and pledge to resume military aid to Kyiv.

The U.S. secretary of state met with his Russian counterpart on the sidelines of a gathering of Southeast Asian nations, where he also defended new U.S. tariff threats.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is visiting Malaysia to attend several diplomatic meetings with senior Malaysian government officials. It is his first diplomatic visit to Asia as a member of the Trump administration.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived in the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur on Thursday to attend the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting, local media reported. This marks Rubio's first visit to the region since he assumed office earlier this year, the state-run Bernama news agency reported.