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How the US election works, from how ballots are counted to when we will know the result

Special How the US election works, from how ballots are counted to when we will know the result
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Voters fill out their ballot at the Fashion institute of Technology during first day of early voting in New York on October 26, 2024. (AFP)
Special How the US election works, from how ballots are counted to when we will know the result
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A voter casts her ballot at an early voting location in Columbus, Georgia on October 29, 2024 ahead of the general election. (Anadolu via Getty Images)
Special How the US election works, from how ballots are counted to when we will know the result
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Voters apply for a mail-in ballot at the Lehigh County elections office in Allentown, Pennsylvania, on Oct. 30, 2024. (AP)
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Updated 31 October 2024

How the US election works, from how ballots are counted to when we will know the result

How the US election works, from how ballots are counted to when we will know the result
  • With its electoral college system, staggered results, and early voting options, understanding how the election functions can be daunting
  • To cut through the jargon and complexities of the democratic process, here is a breakdown of all you need to know to survive election day

LONDON: Early voting has already begun in the US to decide who will form the next administration in what many believe is among the most consequential — and hotly contested — elections in a generation.

Almost every poll published over the past week has placed the two main contenders, Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Kamala Harris, neck and neck in the race for the White House.

Analysts predict the result could come down to just a handful of votes. The outcome could have huge implications not only for domestic policy, but also for the international order.

With extensive media coverage, election jargon, and an overwhelming volume of information, understanding the process can feel daunting. Here is a breakdown of all you need to know to survive election day.

The polls

Polls are often excellent indicators of general voter sentiment. However, recent US elections have shown they are far from foolproof.

In 2016, almost every major polling firm predicted Hillary Clinton would defeat Donald Trump. However, pollsters failed to capture Trump’s unexpected support, leading to a surprise victory that confounded many.

In 2020, polls correctly tipped Joe Biden as the likely winner, but underestimated the actual vote share Trump would receive. In the week before the election, polls gave Biden a seven-point lead, yet Trump managed to close the gap by several points on Election Day.

With most polls indicating a close race on Tuesday, many are wondering whether the pollsters have got it right this time around.

Electoral college

About 244 million Americans are eligible to vote in this year’s election. If the turnout matches 2020’s record 67 percent, about 162 million ballots will be cast across 50 states.




People cast their ballots during early in-person voting on Oct. 30, 2024, in Nashville, Tennessee. (AP)

A recent Arab News-YouGov poll indicated that Arab Americans are likely to vote in record numbers, with more than 80 percent of eligible voters saying they intend to participate — potentially swinging the outcome in several key states.

When voters cast their ballots, they do not vote directly for their preferred presidential candidate. Rather, they vote for a slate of “electors” who formally choose the president — a process known as the electoral college system.

Due to the quirks of this system, the candidate with the most votes nationally may not necessarily win the presidency. This was the case with Hillary Clinton in 2016 and Al Gore in 2000, both of whom won the popular vote but lost the election.




Former US Vice President Al Gore (left) won the popular vote in 2000 and so did former US first lady and senator Hilary Clinton in the 2016 election. But both lost the race because their rivals won more electoral votes. (AFP/File photos)l

The electoral college creates what could be defined as 51 mini elections — one in each state and another for Washington, D.C. In 48 states and D.C., the candidate with the majority vote takes all the electors from that state.

However, Maine and Nebraska have a different system, allocating electors by district, meaning their electoral votes may be split between candidates.

In total, 538 electors are distributed among the states. A candidate must secure at least 270 of these to win the presidency.

In the unlikely case that no candidate has the required 270 electoral college votes, then a contingent election takes place. This means the House of Representatives, the lower chamber of the US Congress, votes for the president.

How votes are counted

When the polls close on election day, the count begins. In most cases, in-person votes are counted first, followed by early and mail-in ballots.

Results from smaller or less contested states often come in early, while larger, key battleground states like Pennsylvania or Georgia may take hours — or days — to finalize due to stringent verification steps, including signature checks and ballot preparation for electronic scanning.




Jessica Garofolo (L), administrative services director for Allegheny County, demonstrates how the high-speed ballot scanner for mail-in ballots works during a media tour of the Allegheny County election warehouse in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on Oct. 30, 2024. (AFP)

States like Florida, where mail-in ballots are processed in advance, may report results relatively quickly. Other states, particularly those with late processing times for absentee ballots, might not finalize their tallies until days later.

State and local poll officials collect, verify, and certify the popular vote in each jurisdiction, following procedures for accuracy before final certification by governors and designated officials.

In response to unprecedented threats in 2020, many polling stations have now installed panic buttons, bulletproof glass and armed security to ensure safety across the more than 90,000 polling sites nationwide.




This combination image shows smoke pouring out of a ballot box on Oct. 28, 2024, in Vancouver, Washington (left) and a damaged ballot drop box displayed at the Multnomah County Elections Division office on Oct. 28, 2024, in Portland, Oregon. (KGW8 via AP/AP)

Mail-in and early votes

Although election day is held on the first Tuesday after Nov. 1, many Americans vote early. Early voting allows citizens to cast ballots in person, while others opt for mail-in ballots.

This year, early and mail-in voting are once again expected to play a crucial role, with millions of ballots already cast. President Biden voted early on Monday in his home state of Delaware.




US President Joe Biden casts his early-voting ballot in the 2024 general election in New Castle, Delaware, on October 28, 2024. (AFP)

States vary in how they handle mail-in ballots, with some processing them before election day and others waiting until polls close. In closely contested states, the volume of mail-in ballots could be a decisive factor, potentially delaying results.

Voting by mail has grown in popularity. According to ABC News, as of Tuesday, more than 25.6 million Americans have already returned mail ballots, and more than 65 million — including military personnel serving overseas — have requested absentee ballots.

In 2020, a comparable number voted by mail, though the COVID-19 pandemic significantly increased reliance on this option.




A voter casts her ballot during the early voting period on October 29, 2024 in the city of Dearborn in Michigan state. (Getty Images via AFP)

Despite its growing popularity, the mail-in voting system has faced accusations of fraud. During the last election, authorities and the postal service were strained by millions of extra ballots.

At the time, Trump said that mail-in voting was a “disaster” and “a whole big scam,” claiming that the Democrats had exploited the system to “steal” the election. The Democrats claim those allegations contributed to the Capitol Hill attack of Jan. 6, 2021.

This election cycle, some states, including Michigan and Nevada, have passed laws permitting early counting of mail-in ballots, which should lead to faster results. However, most states’ absentee voting policies have seen minimal changes, leaving tensions high.

Authorities are closely monitoring the process. In a sign of just how tense the situation has become, officials announced on Tuesday that they were searching for suspects after hundreds of votes deposited in two ballot drop boxes in the Pacific Northwest were destroyed by fire.

When will a winner be declared?

Indiana and Kentucky will be the first states to close their polls at 6 pm ET, followed by seven more states an hour later, including the battleground state of Georgia, which in 2020 voted for Biden. North Carolina, another critical swing state which picked Trump last time around, closes at 7:30 pm ET.




Supporters of US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris cheer during a Get Out the Vote rally in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Oct. 30, 2024. (AFP)

By around 8 p.m. ET, many states will have reported results, most of which are expected to follow traditional patterns. However, early results in solid Republican states like South Carolina could hint at trends in neighboring battlegrounds like Georgia.

By 9 p.m. ET, polls in key swing states such as Arizona, Wisconsin and Michigan close, with results trickling in soon after. By midnight ET, most of the nation will have reported, with Hawaii and Alaska closing shortly after, likely providing a clearer picture.

Pennsylvania, which is seen as a bellwether of the overall election outcome, aims to announce its results by early morning on Nov. 6.

The timing of a winner declaration ultimately depends on how close the race is in these key states. If one candidate establishes a clear lead in pivotal swing states early, a winner could be projected by major networks, as Fox News controversially did in 2020, calling Arizona for Biden hours ahead of other broadcasters.




Former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump dances as he leaves a campaign rally in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, on Oct. 30, 2024. (AFP)

If the race remains tight in crucial states like Pennsylvania, Arizona, or Michigan — all won by Biden last time around — the results may be delayed, possibly into the next day or later.

In 2020, it took four days to project Biden’s win due to a high volume of mail-in ballots. Experts caution that similarly close results this year could lead to a comparable delay.

Possible controversy

As in previous years, the outcome of the election will likely be contested. Delays in ballot counting, especially from mail-in votes, could fuel disputes in states where margins are tight.




Mail-in ballots are secured inside a cage before election day, as officials host a media tour of the Allegheny County election warehouse in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on Oct. 30, 2024. (AFP)

Both parties have prepared legal teams to challenge issues surrounding ballot validity, recounts, or other contested results.

Concerns over voter intimidation, misinformation and unsubstantiated allegations of fraud may further stoke tensions, despite the rigorous safeguards put in place.

In its latest assessment, the International Crisis Group noted that while conditions differ from 2020, political divisions remain sharp and risks of unrest remain high, especially if results are contested or take days to finalize.

As the world watches Tuesday’s election closely, there is widespread hope for a fair and peaceful process, marking a fitting conclusion to this tense political season.


Zelensky hails ‘strong’ message’ of US sanctions on Russia

Updated 1 sec ago

Zelensky hails ‘strong’ message’ of US sanctions on Russia

Zelensky hails ‘strong’ message’ of US sanctions on Russia
BRUSSELS: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday hailed the “strong and much-needed” message sent by US sanctions on Russia’s energy sector, after President Donald Trump moved to ratchet up pressure on Moscow in step with the EU.
“We waited for this. God bless it will work and this is very important,” Zelensky told journalists at an EU summit in Brussels, saying Washington had sent “a good signal to other countries in the world to join the sanctions.”
Trump slapped sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil companies Rosneft and Lukoil on Wednesday, complaining that his talks with Vladimir Putin to end the Ukraine war “don’t go anywhere.”
Posting on X as he arrived in Brussels, Zelensky thanked Trump for a “resolute and well-targeted decision.”
He said the US sanctions were a “clear signal that prolonging the war and spreading terror come at a cost.”
“It is a strong and much-needed message that aggression will not go unanswered,” he said.
Trump has held off pulling the trigger on sanctions against Russia for months but his patience snapped after plans for a fresh summit with Putin in Budapest collapsed.
His move came as the European Union approved a 19th package of sanctions to pressure Russia to end its relentless, three-and-a-half-year invasion of its neighbor.
As part of its new measures, the 27-nation bloc likewise targeted Russia’s fossil fuels by bringing forward a ban on the import of liquefied natural gas by a year to the start of 2027.
It also blacklisted over 100 more tankers from Moscow’s so-called “shadow fleet” of aging oil vessels and imposed controls on the travel of Russian diplomats suspected of espionage.
The package was formally adopted Thursday, just before Zelensky joined EU leaders for summit talks focused on shoring up support for Ukraine.

Russian strikes kill rescuer, damage synagogue in Ukraine

Russian strikes kill rescuer, damage synagogue in Ukraine
Updated 15 min 45 sec ago

Russian strikes kill rescuer, damage synagogue in Ukraine

Russian strikes kill rescuer, damage synagogue in Ukraine
  • Russian attacks overnight and into the early hours of Thursday killed one rescue worker in Ukraine, disrupted train services and damaged a synagogue, Ukrainian officials said

KYIV: Russian attacks overnight and into the early hours of Thursday killed one rescue worker in Ukraine, disrupted train services and damaged a synagogue, Ukrainian officials said.
AFP journalists in Kyiv heard air raid sirens and explosions during the night, as Russia launched 130 drones, according to the Ukrainian air force.
The emergency services said the rescue worker was killed and five others were wounded putting out a fire during a repeat Russian attack on the village of Zelenyi Gai in the eastern Kharkiv region.
“Another crime against rescuers,” its statement posted on social media said.
In Kyiv, eight people were wounded, city officials said, while the foreign ministry announced a synagogue had been damaged during the attack on three districts of the city.
“Russian terror does not spare anyone, including religious communities,” the foreign ministry said.
Its statement added that 640 places of worship and 67 religious leaders had been killed since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
AFP journalists in Kyiv saw residential buildings whose windows were blown out in the attack and the charred remains of cars as residents cleared rubble.
In the eastern Sumy region, officials said two railway workers were wounded, while the state trains operator said services were disrupted in the border region.
Russia’s defense ministry meanwhile said it shot down 139 Ukrainian drones overnight, mostly over western regions bordering Ukraine.
The governor of the Ryazan region, southeast of Moscow, reported a fire at an industrial site, after unverified images on social media showed a large flame at an oil refinery there.
The overnight exchange of Russian and Ukrainian fire came one day after Russian bombardments killed seven people, including two children, and spurred nationwide blackouts across Ukraine.


South Africa seeks to save birds from wind turbine risks

South Africa seeks to save birds from wind turbine risks
Updated 23 October 2025

South Africa seeks to save birds from wind turbine risks

South Africa seeks to save birds from wind turbine risks
  • With more than 1,400 turbines operating across South Africa, an estimated 6,000 birds die this way a year, ten percent are endangered species
  • To mitigate the impact, Excelsior Wind Farm has implemented a Shutdown on Demand Protocol that prioritizes six vulnerable species, including the Cape vulture and endangered black harrier

SWELLENDAM: Powerful gusts shook an observation post perched on a hill at a wind farm in South Africa as two monitors scanned the landscape through binoculars.
The Overberg mountains stretched along the horizon, but the monitors — bundled in scarves — were focused on activity much closer: around a giant wind turbine, a small, dark silhouette had appeared.
“Stop turbine 11, please. Cape vulture,” one said into a walkie-talkie. “Stopping turbine 11,” came the reply.
Immediately, the blades of the 150-meter (500-feet) turbine began to slow, coming to a complete stop in less than a minute.
BirdLife South Africa estimates that every year an average 4.25 birds are killed per wind turbine, most often when they fly into blades that can reach speeds of up to 280 kilometers (175 miles) per hour.
With more than 1,400 turbines operating across South Africa, an estimated 6,000 birds die this way a year, the group says. Ten percent are endangered species.
To mitigate the impact, Excelsior Wind Farm has implemented a Shutdown on Demand Protocol that prioritizes six vulnerable species, including the Cape vulture and endangered black harrier.
When monitors spot one, “they inform the control room via radio and that’s when they will turn off the turbine,” said conservationist Clarissa Mars, who oversees the program at the farm 200 kilometers east of Cape Town.
“That takes approximately 43 seconds,” she told AFP.
“There were less than eight fatalities for the site in approximately five years,” Mars said. “And I’m just very happy knowing there were no fatalities this year.”
The Stop on Demand Protocol — developed in the late 2010s, notably in Kenya — has been adopted worldwide and was introduced at Excelsior in 2020.
Its impact on energy output at its small operation of 13 turbines has been negligible, said site manager Jacques Redelinghuys.
“We’ve lost less than 0.5 percent of revenue due to the program,” he said. “And on days like today, when we do produce more due to our high wind speed, we make up for the losses that we incurred.”

- Extinction by wind farm? -

While the shutdown protocol has saved some species from the blades at Excelsior, such as the Cape vulture, it has been less effective for the black harrier, a critically endangered bird of which only around 1,300 remain in the world.
The smaller bird is harder for the monitors to spot, conservationist Odette Curtis-Scott said.
The Overberg region is a vital breeding ground for the black harrier, but 95 percent of its natural habitat here has been lost to agriculture, she said.
This forces the bird to travel further in search of water and prey, increasing the risks of colliding with turbines.
“It’s not ideal that the wind farm is where it is,” said Curtis-Scott, who heads the Overberg Renosterveld Trust.
In early 2025, the trust bought land five kilometers from Excelsior where there is a black harrier colony and about 40 return to breed each year.
Despite the efforts, around 13 black harriers have been killed at South Africa’s more than 30 wind farms in the past decade, according to University of Cape Town professor Rob Simmons.
“If we were to kill an extra three to five adult black harriers per year through wind farms, the population will go extinct within 75 to 100 years,” he said.
“It’s one of the first species in South Africa, possibly even in Africa, for which we know that wind farms can have a direct effect on the potential extinction.”
Another potential solution to this “green-green dilemma” is painting turbine blades, Simmons said.
“Birds do not see black and white contrasts as well as we do,” he said. “They, therefore, do not see a white blade spinning against a cloudy sky. This is very likely why they do not avoid it.”
An experiment at a wind farm 90 kilometers north of Cape Town, where blades were painted with bold red stripes, resulted in a 87 percent drop in bird mortality over two years, he said.
“We cannot continue burning fossil fuels,” he said. “Some species, like the black harrier, will not survive climate change. But we also cannot sacrifice numerous birds on the altar of renewable energy.”


American e-waste is causing a ‘hidden tsunami’ in Southeast Asia, report says

American e-waste is causing a ‘hidden tsunami’ in Southeast Asia, report says
Updated 23 October 2025

American e-waste is causing a ‘hidden tsunami’ in Southeast Asia, report says

American e-waste is causing a ‘hidden tsunami’ in Southeast Asia, report says
  • Electronic waste, or e-waste, includes discarded devices like phones and computers containing both valuable materials and toxic metals like lead, cadmium and mercury
  • That American e-waste adds to the burden for Asia, which already produces nearly half the world’s total

HANOI: Millions of tons of discarded electronics from the United States are being shipped overseas, much of it to developing countries in Southeast Asia unprepared to safely handle hazardous waste, according to a new report released Wednesday by an environmental watchdog.
The Seattle-based Basel Action Network, or BAN, said a two-year investigation found at least 10 US companies exporting used electronics to Asia and the Middle East, in what it says is a “hidden tsunami” of electronic waste.
“This new, almost invisible tsunami of e-waste, is taking place ... padding already lucrative profit margins of the electronics recycling sector while allowing a major portion of the American public’s and corporate IT equipment to be surreptitiously exported to and processed under harmful conditions in Southeast Asia,” the report said.
Growing e-waste
Electronic waste, or e-waste, includes discarded devices like phones and computers containing both valuable materials and toxic metals like lead, cadmium and mercury. As gadgets are replaced faster, global e-waste is growing five times quicker than it’s formally recycled.
The world produced a record 62 million metric tons in 2022. That’s expected to climb to 82 million by 2030, according to the United Nations’ International Telecommunication Union and its research arm, UNITAR.
Toxic chemicals
That American e-waste adds to the burden for Asia, which already produces nearly half the world’s total. Much of it is dumped in landfills, leaching toxic chemicals into the environment. Some ends up in informal scrapyards, where workers burn or dismantle devices by hand, often without protection, releasing toxic fumes and scrap.
About 2,000 containers — roughly 33,000 metric tons (36,376 US tons) — of used electronics leave US ports every month, according to the report. It said the companies behind the shipments, described as “e-waste brokers,” typically don’t recycle the waste themselves but send it to companies in developing countries.
Response to the report
The companies identified in the report include Attan Recycling, Corporate eWaste Solutions or CEWS, Creative Metals Group, EDM, First America Metal Corp., GEM Iron and Metal Inc., Greenland Resource, IQA Metals, PPM Recycling and Semsotai.
Six of the companies didn’t immediately respond to emailed requests for comment.
Semsotai told The Associated Press that it doesn’t export scrap, only working components for reuse. It accused BAN of bias.
PPM Recycling told The Associated Press that its warehouses in California and Texas ship only aluminum and other non-iron metals to Malaysia. It said BAN had exaggerated shipment volumes, adding that it used accurate trade codes and followed US and international rules.
Greenland Resource told The Associated Press it took the allegations seriously and was reviewing the matter internally and couldn’t comment further without seeing the report.
CEWS said it follows strict environmental standards, but some aspects of where and how recycled materials are handled are industrial secrets.
Value of more than $1 billion
The report estimated that between January 2023 and February 2025, the 10 companies exported more than 10,000 containers of potential e-waste valued at over $1 billion, the report said. Industrywide, such trade could top $200 million a month.
Eight of the 10 identified companies hold R2V3 certifications — an industry standard meant to ensure electronics are recycled safely and responsibly, raising questions about the value of such a certification, the report said.
Several companies operate out of California, despite the state’s strict e-waste laws requiring full reporting and proper downstream handling of electronic and universal waste.
International treaty
Many e-waste containers go to countries that have banned such imports under the Basel Convention, which is an international treaty that bars hazardous waste trade from non-signatories like the US, the only industrialized nation yet to ratify it.
The nonprofit said its review of government and private trade records from ships and customs officials showed shipments were often declared under trade codes that did not match those for electronic waste, such as “commodity materials” like raw metals or other recyclable goods to evade detection. Such classifications were “highly unlikely” given how the companies publicly describe their operations, the report said.
Landfills and pollution
Tony R. Walker, who studies global waste trade at the Dalhousie University’s School for Resource and Environmental Studies in Halifax in Canada, said he wasn’t surprised that e-waste continues to evade regulation. While some devices can be legally traded if functional, most such exports to developing nations are broken or obsolete and mislabeled, bound for landfills that pollute the environment and have little market value, he said.
He pointed to Malaysia — a Basel Convention signatory identified in the report as the primary destination for US e-waste — saying the country would be overwhelmed by that volume, in addition to waste from other wealthy nations.
“It simply means the country is being overwhelmed with what is essentially pollution transfer from other nations,” he said.
‘Makkah of junk’
The report estimates that US e-waste shipments may have made up about 6 percent of all US exports to the country from 2023 to 2025. After China banned imports of foreign waste in 2017, many Chinese businesses shifted their operations to Southeast Asia, using family and business ties to secure permits.
“Malaysia suddenly became this mecca of junk,” said Jim Puckett of the Basel Action Network.
Containers were also sent to Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines and the UAE, despite bans under the Basel Convention and national laws, the report added.
In countries receiving this US e-waste, “undocumented workers desperate for jobs” toil in makeshift facilities, inhaling toxic fumes as they strip wires, melt plastics and dismantle devices without protection, the report said.
Efforts to control illegal imports
Authorities in Thailand and Malaysia have stepped up efforts to curb illegal imports of US e-waste.
In May, Thai authorities seized 238 tons of US e-waste at Bangkok’s port seized 238 tons of US scrap at Bangkok’s port while Malaysian authorities confiscated e-waste worth $118 million in nationwide raids in June.
Most of the facilities in Malaysia were illegal and lacked environmental safeguards, said SiPeng Wong, of Malaysia’s Center to Combat Corruption & Cronyism.
Exporting e-waste from rich nations to developing nations strains local facilities, overwhelms efforts to manage domestic waste and is a form of “waste colonialism,” she said.


Trump heads to Asia aiming to make deals with Xi

Trump heads to Asia aiming to make deals with Xi
Updated 23 October 2025

Trump heads to Asia aiming to make deals with Xi

Trump heads to Asia aiming to make deals with Xi
  • US President Donald Trump is set to embark on a major trip to Asia this week with all eyes on an expected meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping that has huge implications for the global economy

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump is set to embark on a major trip to Asia this week with all eyes on an expected meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping that has huge implications for the global economy.
Trump said on Wednesday he was making a “big trip” to Malaysia, Japan and South Korea, his first visit to the region since he returned to the White House in a blaze of tariffs and geopolitical brinkmanship.
Much of the trip remains shrouded in uncertainty. The White House has given almost no details, and Trump has warned that his anticipated sit-down with Xi in South Korea may not even happen amid ongoing tensions.
But Trump has made it clear he hopes to seal a “good” deal with China and end a bitter trade war between the world’s two largest economies that has caused global shockwaves.
The host nations are meanwhile set to roll out the red carpet to ensure they stay on the right side of the unpredictable 79-year-old, and win the best deals they can on tariffs and security assistance.
Malaysia and Japan
His first stop is expected to be Malaysia for the October 26-28 summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) — a grouping Trump skipped several times in his first term.
Trump is set to ink a trade deal with Malaysia — but more importantly to oversee the signing of a peace accord between Thailand and Cambodia, as he continues his quest for a Nobel Peace Prize.
“President Trump is keen to see the more positive results of the peace negotiations between Thailand and Cambodia,” Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said on Wednesday.
The US leader may also meet Brazilian counterpart Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on the sidelines of the summit to improve ties after months of bad blood, officials from both countries told AFP.
Trump’s next stop is expected to be Tokyo where he will be able to meet conservative Sanae Takaichi, named this week as Japan’s first woman prime minister.
Japan has escaped the worst of the tariffs Trump slapped on countries around the world to end what he calls unfair trade balances that are “ripping off the United States.”
At the same time, Trump wants Japan to halt Russian energy imports and has also urged Tokyo to follow Western allies in increasing defense spending.
Xi in South Korea?
But the climax of the trip is expected to be in South Korea, where Trump is due to arrive on October 29 for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit — and potentially meet Xi.
The first meeting between the two leaders since Trump’s return to office could smooth over the trade war between Washington and Beijing — but Beijing’s rare earth curbs have also infuriated Trump.
Trump initially threatened to cancel the meeting and imposed fresh tariffs, before saying he would go ahead after all. But he added on Tuesday that still “maybe it won’t happen.”
He said on Wednesday that he hoped to make a deal with Xi on “everything” and also hoped the Chinese leader could have a “big influence” on getting Russia’s Vladimir Putin to end the Ukraine war.
Analysts warned not to expect any breakthroughs.
“The meeting will be a data point along an existing continuum rather than an inflection point in the relationship,” said Ryan Hass, a senior fellow at Brookings Institution.
South Korea, seeking its own trade deal, is reportedly considering the rare step of awarding Trump the Grand Order of Mugunghwa — the country’s highest decoration — during his visit.
North Korea will also be on the agenda. The country fired multiple ballistic missiles on Wednesday, just days before Trump was due to visit.
Trump has said he hopes to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un following several meetings during the US president’s first term, but there has been no confirmation of reports that the White House was looking at a new meeting this time.