China’s leader, Xi Jinping, issued a blunt warning to President Trump in their first round of talks on Thursday, saying relations between Beijing and Washington could enter an “extremely dangerous place” if Mr. Trump ignored China’s demands over Taiwan.
After the two leaders greeted each other with smiles at a welcome ceremony, Mr. Xi made clear that he would press Mr. Trump on Taiwan, the island democracy that Beijing considers its territory — to be taken by force if Chinese leaders eventually decide. Taiwan relies on U.S. political and military support to deter that threat, and Mr. Xi’s stark comments suggested that he may urge Mr. Trump to slow or reduce American arms sales to Taiwan.
“The Taiwan issue is the most critical issue in China-U.S. relations,” Mr. Xi said, according to an official summary of his remarks to Mr. Trump issued by Xinhua, China’s state news agency. If Chinese concerns over Taiwan were “handled well,” he added, relations between Beijing and Washington could remain stable.
“If handled poorly, the two countries will collide or even clash, putting the entire U.S.-China relationship in an extremely dangerous situation,” Mr. Xi said.
The initial Chinese summary of Mr. Xi’s remarks did not say whether he or his officials directly raised U.S. military sales to Taiwan during the talks with Mr. Trump, which were held in the Great Hall of the People. Mr. Trump is weighing whether to approve a weapons sale worth about $14 billion to Taiwan, after signing off on an $11 billion sale late last year. Last week, Taiwan’s legislature approved $25 billion in special funding to pay for the missiles and other weapons from the United States.
Mr. Xi had warned Mr. Trump in a February phone call that he should handle arms sales to the Taiwan with “extreme caution.” Mr. Trump’s administration has held off on approving the latest arms sale to avoid upsetting Mr. Xi ahead of the Beijing summit, U.S. officials said earlier this year.
Since 1979, Taiwan has received tens of billions of dollars’ worth of American arms, including F-16 fighter jets, missiles, warships, tanks, air defense systems and artillery units. Some of that arsenal is aging.
If Mr. Trump discusses U.S. arms sales to Taiwan with Mr. Xi, he may be seen as breaching the “six assurances” that President Ronald Reagan gave Taiwan in 1982, including that the United States would not consult with China before selling weapons to Taiwan.
Chris Buckley, the chief China correspondent for The Times, reports on China and Taiwan from Taipei, focused on politics, social change and security and military issues.
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