The official White House statement notably omitted any reference to Taiwan, despite the topic being a clear priority for Xi Jinping.
According to Beijing’s version of the discussions, Xi pressed Trump to formally oppose Taiwanese independence and proceed with caution on the matter.
Following their May meeting, Trump disclosed that Xi had directly asked whether the United States would defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese military strike.
He remarked to reporters, “There’s only one person that knows that, and it is me,” questioning whether it made strategic sense for US forces to “travel 9,500 miles to fight a war” over the issue.
However, Trump provided far fewer details during this summit.
“We didn’t talk about it too much,” he told reporters over the weekend.
“Right now, it’s fine. It’s just moving along,” Trump stated. “He understands very much how I feel.”
This conspicuous silence may carry significant geopolitical weight.
Trump has previously characterized a proposed $14 billion US arms package for Taiwan as “a very good negotiating chip” in his negotiations with Beijing. The arms package has remained on hold for months.
Adding to the confusion, US Ambassador to China David Perdue told Fox News that Trump had offered to sell weapons to Xi during the summit.
The State Department subsequently clarified that US law prohibits arms sales to China and that there are no current plans to do so.
Beijing considers the self-governing island to be part of China. Most nations, including the United States, do not recognize Taiwan as an independent state; however, Washington opposes any attempts to seize the island by force and remains committed to supplying it with defensive weapons.
