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The president's statements leave a $14 billion arms deal, approved by Congress in January, uncertain...
President Donald Trump said he is still considering a major arms sale to Taiwan, after meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing.
Speaking to reporters Friday aboard Air Force One, returning to the U.S. from China, Trump said he would make a decision “in a fairly short period of time.” He added that he would need to speak to the person “who runs Taiwan.”
The president's remarks, which acknowledged that Xi raised the issue of U.S.-Taiwan arms deals, could signal a significant shift in U.S. approach. In 1982, President Ronald Reagan's administration gave Taiwan the so-called "Six Guarantees," which included a pledge that the U.S. would not consult with Beijing on arms sales to the island.
Trump insisted that the conversation with the Chinese president does not constitute a change in American foreign policy, Politico writes.
"He brought it up," Trump said of Xi, adding, "of course, he talked to me about it. What was I supposed to do, tell him I don't want to talk to you about it because I have an agreement signed in 1982?"
His comments leave the future of the $14 billion deal with Taiwan, which Congress approved in January, unclear.
Trump's stance could unsettle Taiwan supporters, who have for months expressed concern that the president's drive to strengthen economic ties with China could weaken traditional American support for the island. The Trump administration has regularly denied claims that the president would abandon Taiwan.
David Sacks, a former political-military expert at the US diplomatic mission in Taiwan, said that a direct negotiation on arms sales or a consultation with Beijing on what the US would or would not sell "would constitute a departure from precedent," if China requested it and the president agreed to do so.
According to Trump, Xi "feels very strongly" about the Taiwan issue and "doesn't want to see a movement for independence."
"I heard it," Trump said. "I didn't comment. I heard it. I have a lot of respect for him."
Trump also did not commit to whether the US would defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese attack. He returned to the strategic ambiguity that his predecessors have pursued for years, although former President Joe Biden had moved away from that approach. According to Trump, Xi had asked him the same question earlier on Friday.
“I don’t want to say that,” Trump said. “I won’t say that. There’s only one person who knows that. You know who it is? Me. I’m the only one. That question was asked to me today by President Xi. I said, ‘I don’t talk about that stuff.’”
Qe Taiwan është i Kines nuk e luan as topi e do ta marre nje dite, ky është fakt. Jo po pse Kina krijon ishuj ne det e verr verr. Me se t’i ushqeje e strehoje 1.5 miliarde Chinese? Pasi e bene Kinen superfuqi duke i dhene industri e teknologji, sepse perfituan nga krahu i lire i punes, Kina që nuk kishte të hante ne vitet 60-70, sot e mban trupin drejt se punoi me ekonomi të planifikuar, ndersa keta të perendimit rrembe ku të mundesh e sa të mundesh. Kina ka shtet e i kontrollon olilgarket, ndersa ne perendim oligarket komandojne shtetin. Ketu është ndryshimi esencial. Po u be bishti me i rende se sqepari e mori ferra uraten.