Donald Trump wimped out and did not bother to raise a major issue involving Taiwan during his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, despite growing tensions in the region.
Trump admitted the topic of Taiwan “never came up” before quickly moving on to other questions.
President Trump was asked about Taiwan after China warned that it “absolutely will not” rule out military action to fully take over the democratically governed island, which Beijing claims as its own.
Trump was speaking with reporters aboard Air Force One after the crunch talks in South Korea with Xi.
For decades, the U.S. has supported Taiwan’s defense without establishing formal diplomatic ties. Multiple U.S. presidents have maintained that Washington would help Taiwan defend itself as part of efforts to deter Beijing from invading the island.
Even as China ramped up its rhetoric about a potential invasion, Trump—nicknamed “TACO” [Trump Always Chickens Out] for his flip-flopping on threats, including those against China—seemingly did not consider Beijing’s rising rhetoric significant enough to address during his meeting with Xi.
“We had a long meeting, as you know, but a lot of things we discussed in great detail. A lot of things we brought to finalization,” Trump said. “I thought it was a great meeting. I think it was a very friendly meeting. It was a good meeting for two very large, powerful countries.”
Peng Qing’en, a spokesperson for China’s Taiwan Affairs Office, told a news conference Wednesday that plans for “reunification” between China and the island is the best way of “resolving the Taiwan issue.”
“We are willing to create ample space for peaceful reunification and will spare no effort to pursue this prospect with the utmost sincerity,” Peng said, according to Reuters. “However, we absolutely will not renounce the use of force and reserve the option to take all necessary measures.”
While China has long refused to rule out the use of force, officials do not usually state this so explicitly in public. Peng’s comments did not appear in three articles published this week by the Chinese state-run news agency Xinhua about how the “reunification” of Taiwan could unfold, according to Reuters.
There had been fears that the Trump administration might soften its stance on Taiwan and use the island as a bargaining chip in the trade deal talks with China after Trump’s tariff plans reignited a trade war between the two economic powerhouses.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio downplayed those concerns Saturday, insisting there are no plans to offer concessions to China “in exchange for walking away from Taiwan.”
Trump posted on Truth Social that he had a “great meeting” with Xi, while appearing to suggest a new trade deal is now in the works that would lower tariffs, China allowing U.S. easier access to rare earth minerals, and Beijing to “begin the purchase of massive amounts of soybeans.”
“We agreed on many things, with others, even of high importance, being very close to resolved,” Trump wrote.
The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.
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