Washington
Beset by challenges at home, President Donald Trump on Friday embarks on the longest trip to Asia by an American president in more than a quarter century, looking for help to pressure North Korea to stand down from a nuclear crisis. Trump’s tour of Japan, South Korea, China, Vietnam and the Philippines from Friday to November 14 will take him out of Washington as is preoccupied with several issues.

These include an intensifying federal investigation into Russian meddling in last year’s election, New York’s recovery from an attack that killed eight persons and debate over a tax-cut plan that if approved by Congress would be his first major legislative victory.

The trip comes just days after Trump’s former campaign manager, Paul Manafort, was indicted in the investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election. Amid the furor caused by the revelations, the Kremlin said on Friday a meeting between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin was being discussed and Trump said it might happen.

“We may have a meeting with Putin. And, again – Putin is very important because they can help us with North Korea. They can help us with Syria. We have to talk about Ukraine.”

Trump will fly on Friday to Hawaii, stopping for a briefing on US military forces in the Pacific and a visit to Pearl Harbor. Trump will then visit Japan and South Korea in search of a united front against North Korea before going to Beijing, where he will push Chinese President Xi Jinping to get tougher with Pyongyang.