Xi Jinping has appealed to Vietnam to join China in upholding multilateral trade, as he begins a high-stakes diplomatic tour of the region’s major export-reliant economies in a bid to position his country as a stable partner in contrast to the United States.

China’s leader Xi Jinping started a week of diplomacy in Southeast Asia with a visit to Vietnam, signaling China’s commitment to global trade.

China's President Xi Jinping on Monday called for stronger ties with Vietnam on trade and supply chains amid disruptions caused by U.S. tariffs, as he attended the signing in Hanoi of dozens of cooperation agreements between the two Communist-run nations.