US-CHINA SUMMIT DEEPENS ASIAN ALLIES' FEARS OF BILATERAL DEAL-MAKING

President Trump's visit to Beijing this week has crystallized anxieties among US allies in Asia that Washington and China may strike bilateral agreements that exclude regional partners. Asian nations fear Trump could trade security commitments for favorable economic terms with Beijing, leaving them vulnerable in an increasingly fragmented global order. The concern represents a shift from traditional Cold War dynamics, where nations feared forced alignment with superpowers, to worries about being marginalized by great power cooperation. This uncertainty comes as ASEAN grapples with managing South China Sea tensions and pursuing regional trade frameworks like the RCEP review scheduled for 2027.