President Donald Trump's meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping this week is being watched with anxiety in Taipei, where officials fear Taiwan's security could become part of a broader negotiation involving trade and U.S.-China relations.
The concern intensified after Trump said he would discuss U.S. arms sales to Taiwan with Xi, a subject Beijing has long demanded Washington stop supporting. "I'm going to have that discussion," Trump told reporters. "President Xi would like us not to," he added about arms sales.
A roughly $14 billion arms package for Taiwan has not yet been formally sent to Congress, prompting a bipartisan group of senators to urge Trump to move forward before meeting Xi.
Trump arrived in Beijing on Wednesday for talks with Xi Jinping scheduled across Thursday and Friday. Taiwan arms sales, the Iran war, trade, rare earth resources, artificial intelligence, nuclear arms, detained figures, and Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai are all reported topics of discussion.
In their letter, the senators said the president should make clear that "American support for Taiwan is not up for negotiation." The U.S. maintains a carefully calibrated "One China" policy, acknowledging Beijing's position that Taiwan is part of China while not recognizing the Chinese Communist Party's sovereignty over the self-governing island.
Washington also maintains unofficial ties with Taipei and is required under the Taiwan Relations Act to help Taiwan maintain the ability to defend itself. But CNN reported that some current and former U.S. officials and analysts worry Trump's transactional style could give Xi an opening.
Taiwanese officials have publicly projected confidence. Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung said Taipei has received repeated U.S. assurances that policy remains unchanged, but also acknowledged the stakes, saying Taiwan hopes the Trump-Xi meeting produces no "surprises" on Taiwan-related issues.
Xi has repeatedly said Taiwan's "reunification" with mainland China is inevitable and has not ruled out the use of force. Beijing has also described Taiwan as one of the most dangerous issues in U.S.-China relations. The summit comes as Trump seeks China's help on multiple fronts, including trade and the Iran war.
Taiwan, meanwhile, is trying to show it is investing in its own defense. Its parliament approved a $25 billion defense spending bill last week, though that was below the nearly $40 billion package the government had sought. Piero Tozzi, senior director for China policy at the America First Policy Institute, told CNN that Trump "understands how important Taiwan is" and argued the island is "the front line" of U.S. defense.
