Donald Trump is setting off on an Asian tour this Friday, following a whirlwind of diplomatic activity that includes reigniting trade tensions with Canada and imposing fresh sanctions on Russia. During this weeklong journey through Malaysia, Japan, and South Korea, the President is expected to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping. This meeting, set against the backdrop of an ongoing trade war, is anticipated to be a pivotal moment. Trump has raised expectations for this trip, boasting that he will secure a “really fair and really great trade deal” with China by the time he leaves South Korea.

This diplomatic mission unfolds after a tumultuous week for the Trump administration’s foreign policy. Efforts to stabilize the Middle East remain fragile, particularly after the Israeli Knesset symbolically supported the annexation of the West Bank, despite Trump’s earlier agreement with Hamas. Additionally, a planned meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin fell through, resulting in new oil sanctions. Meanwhile, tensions with China have been intensifying over the past months. Steve Bannon, Trump’s former chief strategist, has labeled this Asian tour as one of Trump’s most perilous endeavors yet.

Bannon highlighted the gravity of the situation, stating, “The Chinese Communist Party has declared open economic warfare against America, so this is what they call a throw of the ‘iron dice.’ This is as high stakes as it gets.” To achieve a successful outcome, Trump will likely aim to persuade Xi to ease certain aggressive measures, such as restrictions on products containing Chinese rare earth minerals and the cessation of American soybean purchases. However, there is concern that in pursuit of these goals, Trump might concede too much, potentially lifting export controls on semiconductor chips and manufacturing equipment.

‘The worst case scenario for the United States is Trump concedes a whole lot,’ Liza Tobin, who served as National Security Council director for China during the first Trump term and the start of the Biden administration, told Politico . Trump is leaving Washington, D.C. Friday night for his weeklong trip that will start in Malaysia where he will meet the prime ministers of Malaysia, Cambodia and Thailand. He will also hold a working dinner with ASEAN Leaders. Early next week, the president will fly to Tokyo and meet with Japan’s new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.

Then he will head to South Korea where Trump will deliver remarks at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum (APEC) before concluding his trip with the consequential bilateral meeting with Xi. During a White House event on Thursday Trump repeated his claim that tariffs are what stops the U.S. from being a ‘third world nation.’ Early in his second term, Trump imposed broad tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China before also imposing taxes on nearly every other country on earth.

In February, the president issued a 25 percent tariff on all imports from America’s northern and southern neighbors and then an additional 10 percent on Chinese imports, which he doubled to 20 percent by March. The tariffs, Trump said, were punishment for Mexico, Canada and China emboldening fentanyl to flow into the U.S. and for allowing proliferation of the migration and drug trafficking crisis over American borders. Trump has negotiated with all three nations to alter tariffs after retaliatory taxes were placed on U.S. imports to those nations.

But on Thursday, Trump reignited the fight with Canada after Ontario Premier Doug Ford released a $53.5 million ad campaign using late President Ronald Reagan’s words to push back against U.S. tariffs. A furious Trump slammed the ad as ‘fake’ and immediately announced on Truth Social that he was ‘terminating’ trade negotiations with Canada. The 60-second ad pulls from a 1987 radio address made by Reagan who was explaining at the time why he was placing tariffs on Japanese electronics.

‘Let’s take Ronald Reagan’s words and let’s blast it to the American people,’ Ford said upon launching the campaign. ‘We’re going to repeat that message to every Republican district there is right across the entire country.’ The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute the ad takes the former U.S. president’s words out of context and says they are ‘reviewing its legal options in this matter.’