US President Donald Trump yesterday said he has not made a decision on whether to move forward with a major arms package for Taiwan after hearing concerns about it from Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平).
Trump’s comments on Taiwan came as he flew back to Washington after wrapping up critical talks in which both leaders said important progress was made in stabilizing US-China relations even as deep differences persist between the world’s two biggest powers on Iran and Taiwan.
“I will make a determination,” Trump said, adding: “I’ll be making decisions. But, you know, I think the last thing we need right now is a war that’s 9,500 miles [15,289km] away.”
Photo: Reuters
The Trump administration in December authorized a record-setting US$11 billion weapons package for Taipei, but it has yet to move forward. Lawmakers also approved a US$14 billion arms sale to Taiwan in January, but the sale cannot advance until Trump formally sends it to Congress. China opposes such sales and has suggested that Washington’s relationship with Taiwan is the key factor in US-China ties.
The US president said Xi also reiterated China’s strong opposition to Taiwan’s independence
“I heard him out,” Trump said. “I didn’t make a comment.”
Photo: CNA
In Taipei, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said in a statement last night that arms sales to Taiwan are not only a clear security commitment under the Taiwan Relations Act, but also a form of collective deterrence against regional threats.
It thanked Trump for his continued support for security in the Taiwan Strait since his first term, adding that close Taiwan-US cooperation has long been a cornerstone of stability in the region.
The statement also said Taiwan is a sovereign and independent democracy, and that China’s military threat remains the region’s primary source of insecurity.
With Beijing continuing to expand its military capabilities, project power globally, and conduct operations around the Taiwan Strait such as gray-zone tactics and military harassment, the ministry said effective collective deterrence is crucial to maintaining regional peace and stability.
Taiwan’s foremost priority is to preserve the status quo and uphold its self-defense capabilities, protect the freedom and democracy of 23 million people, and ensure that peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait are not undermined, it said.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) also welcomed US reassurance on no change in its Taiwan policy.
A MOFA statement released earlier yesterday said Taiwan was closely monitoring developments in US-China relations and took note of remarks made by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio during an interview with NBC News in Beijing on Thursday following the first day of Trump-Xi meetings.
Rubio confirmed that Taiwan came up in Trump’s talks with Xi, but added that the US policy toward Taiwan is unchanged.
US arms sales to Taiwan “did not feature prominently” in the Trump-Xi talks, Rubio was quoted by NBC News as saying.
Xi told Trump that mishandling the countries’ disagreements over Taiwan could push China-US relations to a “dangerous place.”
Rubio said that it would be a terrible mistake for China to pursue what it calls “reunification” by force or through any coercive means.
“Any forced change in the status quo and the situation that’s there now would be bad for both countries,” he said.
Lin thanked the US’ reaffirmation of its support for and commitment to peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, and its reiteration that its Taiwan policy remains unchanged, the statement said.
As a responsible member of the international community, Taiwan will continue to bolster its self-defense capabilities and remain committed to working with the US and all nations that value freedom and democracy to maintain peace, stability and prosperity in the Taiwan Strait and the wider region, it said.
A senior Taiwanese security official said that Taiwan shares the same interests as the US and other parties in the Indo-Pacific region.
“The first island chain is particularly crucial to peace and stability in the western Pacific and the Indo-Pacific, and at the core of this is Taiwan,” the official said, referring to an area stretching from Japan through Taiwan and the Philippines.
Next Wednesday marks two years since President William Lai (賴清德) took office and Taipei is closely monitoring whether China would escalate its military deployments in the region after the Trump-Xi summit and around Lai’s anniversary, the official said.
The Chinese Ministry of National Defense did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
China staged its last major war games around Taiwan in late December.
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