Southeast Asian nations want to discuss tariffs with Trump as a unified bloc, Malaysia PM says

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Southeast Asian nations will forge a common front to face challenges including economic headwinds from U.S. tariffs and a four-year civil war in Myanmar, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said Monday.

Opening an annual summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Anwar said he has sought a unified bloc meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump to discuss the tariffs. Officials are hopeful it could happen later this year. Malaysia is the current chair of ASEAN.

“For ASEAN, our peace, stability and prosperity have often depended on an open, inclusive, rules-based international order... These foundations are now being dismantled under the force of arbitrary action," Anwar said.

ASEAN, which has agreed to avoid retaliatory measures, has formed a taskforce to coordinate a response to the U.S. tariffs in parallel with bilateral negotiations by some member countries, Anwar said. ASEAN members include bigger economies such as Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines, as well as Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar.

The region relies on exports to the U.S. and is hurt by the Trump administration's tariffs, which range from 10% for Singapore to as high as 49% for Cambodia. Trump announced a 90-day pause on tariffs in April for most of the world, and this month struck a similar deal with key rival China, easing trade war tensions.

Anwar said an ASEAN leaders' meeting on Tuesday with Chinese Premier Li Qiang and the Gulf Cooperation Council — the first such tripartite meeting — would spur new cooperation that could help insulate ASEAN's economy. The GCC comprises Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

ASEAN leaders later Monday will launch a new 20-year vision to deepen their economic and social integration, Anwar said.

Analysts said China, which is ASEAN's top trading partner, wants to expand its influence by presenting itself as a reliable ally in the region. But tensions persist over Beijing's aggressive stance in the disputed South China Sea that has led to frequent clashes especially with the Philippines.

Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. told the ASEAN summit that a "code of conduct” being negotiated by ASEAN and China to govern the busy sea passage must be binding — one of the factors that has hampered talks.

“We underscore the urgent need to accelerate the adoption of a legally binding code of conduct in the South China Sea to safeguard maritime rights, promote stability and prevent miscalculations at sea,” he said.

On the Myanmar crisis, Anwar said Malaysia has managed to “move the needle forward” after forming an informal advisory group headed by former Thai leader Thaksin Shinawatra. Anwar met last month with Myanmar military chief Gen. Ming Aung Hlaing in Bangkok and held virtual talks with the opposition National Unity Government.

Officials said the current emphasis on aid delivery following a March earthquake that killed 3,700 people could eventually pave the way for peace talks. But critics accuse the army of violating a self-proclaimed ceasefire with dozens of airstrikes, with aid not freely allowed into areas not under the army’s control.

The Myanmar war, which has killed thousands and displaced millions, is a challenge to ASEAN since refugees have fled across borders to neighboring nations. The region has also seen rising transnational crimes and cybercrimes. The bloc has made little headway after the Myanmar military refused to comply with its peace plan, including a ceasefire, delivery of humanitarian aid and negotiations.

Anwar said more engagement is being planned in Myanmar.

“Quiet engagement matters. The steps may be small and the bridge may be fragile but as they say: In matters of peace, even a fragile bridge is better than a widening gulf,” Anwar said.

Thomas Daniel from Malaysia's Institute of Strategic and International Studies said ASEAN has no real leverage to push for reconciliation. The Myanmar military has reportedly lost control of a large part of the country, making the situation even more challenging.

“The conditions on the ground are extremely difficult. I don’t think we have reached a stage where ASEAN can facilitate any kind of political dialogue between conflicting parties. They are not ready for that yet,” he said.

ASEAB leaders chain their hands while posing for a picture before the start of the plenary session at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Monday, May 26, 2025. From left to right, Laos's Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone, Myanmar Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Aung Kyaw Moe, Singapore's Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, Thailand's Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, Vietnam's Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, Philippine's President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Brunei's Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet, Indonesia's President Prabowo Subianto and East Timor's Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)

Thailand's Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra gestures as she attends the plenary session at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)

Vietnam's Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, center, arrives to attend the plenary session at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)

Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, center, together with others ASEAN countries leaders attends the plenary session at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)

Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim attends the plenary session at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump said Iran wants to negotiate with Washington after his threat to strike the Islamic Republic over its bloody crackdown on protesters, a move coming as activists said Monday the death toll in the nationwide demonstrations rose to at least 544.

Iran had no immediate reaction to the news, which came after the foreign minister of Oman — long an interlocutor between Washington and Tehran — traveled to Iran this weekend. It also remains unclear just what Iran could promise, particularly as Trump has set strict demands over its nuclear program and its ballistic missile arsenal, which Tehran insists is crucial for its national defense.

Meanwhile Monday, Iran called for pro-government demonstrators to head to the streets in support of the theocracy, a show of force after days of protests directly challenging the rule of 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iranian state television aired chants from the crowd, who shouted “Death to America!” and “Death to Israel!”

Trump and his national security team have been weighing a range of potential responses against Iran including cyberattacks and direct strikes by the U.S. or Israel, according to two people familiar with internal White House discussions who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

“The military is looking at it, and we’re looking at some very strong options,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Sunday night. Asked about Iran’s threats of retaliation, he said: “If they do that, we will hit them at levels that they’ve never been hit before.”

Trump said that his administration was in talks to set up a meeting with Tehran, but cautioned that he may have to act first as reports of the death toll in Iran mount and the government continues to arrest protesters.

“I think they’re tired of being beat up by the United States,” Trump said. “Iran wants to negotiate.”

He added: “The meeting is being set up, but we may have to act because of what’s happening before the meeting. But a meeting is being set up. Iran called, they want to negotiate.”

Iran through country's parliamentary speaker warned Sunday that the U.S. military and Israel would be “legitimate targets” if America uses force to protect demonstrators.

More than 10,600 people also have been detained over the two weeks of protests, said the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which has been accurate in previous unrest in recent years and gave the death toll. It relies on supporters in Iran crosschecking information. It said 496 of the dead were protesters and 48 were with security forces.

With the internet down in Iran and phone lines cut off, gauging the demonstrations from abroad has grown more difficult. The Associated Press has been unable to independently assess the toll. Iran’s government has not offered overall casualty figures.

Those abroad fear the information blackout is emboldening hard-liners within Iran’s security services to launch a bloody crackdown. Protesters flooded the streets in the country’s capital and its second-largest city on Saturday night into Sunday morning. Online videos purported to show more demonstrations Sunday night into Monday, with a Tehran official acknowledging them in state media.

In Tehran, a witness told the AP that the streets of the capital empty at the sunset call to prayers each night. By the Isha, or nighttime prayer, the streets are deserted.

Part of that stems from the fear of getting caught in the crackdown. Police sent the public a text message that warned: “Given the presence of terrorist groups and armed individuals in some gatherings last night and their plans to cause death, and the firm decision to not tolerate any appeasement and to deal decisively with the rioters, families are strongly advised to take care of their youth and teenagers.”

Another text, which claimed to come from the intelligence arm of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, also directly warned people not to take part in demonstrations.

“Dear parents, in view of the enemy’s plan to increase the level of naked violence and the decision to kill people, ... refrain from being on the streets and gathering in places involved in violence, and inform your children about the consequences of cooperating with terrorist mercenaries, which is an example of treason against the country,” the text warned.

The witness spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity due to the ongoing crackdown.

The demonstrations began Dec. 28 over the collapse of the Iranian rial currency, which trades at over 1.4 million to $1, as the country’s economy is squeezed by international sanctions in part levied over its nuclear program. The protests intensified and grew into calls directly challenging Iran’s theocracy.

Nikhinson reported from aboard Air Force One.

In this frame grab from video obtained by the AP outside Iran, a masked demonstrator holds a picture of Iran's Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi during a protest in Tehran, Iran, Friday, January. 9, 2026. (UGC via AP)

In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran shows protesters taking to the streets despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026.(UGC via AP)

In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran showed protesters once again taking to the streets of Tehran despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Saturday Jan. 10, 2026. (UGC via AP)