President Trump said that he would talk to Taiwan’s president about a possible weapons sale to the self-governing democracy. Direct dialogue would anger China, which claims Taiwan as its territory and opposes contact between Taiwanese and foreign leaders.
President Lai Ching-te of Taiwan said he would be happy to speak with President Trump, a move that would defy U.S. diplomatic protocol and infuriate China.
The lack of concrete agreements with Beijing shows the risks of President Trump’s personality-driven foreign policy, which rests on the belief that he can defend U.S. interests through charm and force of will.
After President Trump hinted that weapons sales to Taiwan could figure in negotiations with China, officials emphasized their island’s strategic importance.
The lack of concrete agreements with Beijing shows the risks of President Trump’s personality-driven foreign policy, which rests on the belief that he can defend U.S. interests through charm and force of will.
The president said a potential arms deal for Taiwan was a “very good negotiating chip” in talks with Beijing. His words raise questions about the reliability of U.S. support.
The engagement between the president and the Chinese leader may have tested a decades-old U.S. assurance to Taiwan not to consult Beijing on the topic.
Having fought the Trump administration to a draw, China’s Xi Jinping is proposing “constructive strategic stability,” aimed at drawing lines he thinks the U.S. should not cross.
During the first round of two days of talks, Xi Jinping issued a stern warning about Taiwan while Trump touted all the top business leaders in his delegation.
From satellite phone check-ins to a borrowed royal plane, new details show how Taiwan’s leader’s team outwitted China and pulled off an audacious journey to southern Africa.
There are few issues in diplomacy more complicated than the status of the self-governing island, which China claims as its own. It is almost certain to come up when President Trump meets China’s leader.
Beijing has called Taiwan the “core of China’s core interests.” Xi Jinping is likely to focus on getting President Trump to slow approval of more weapons for the self-governing island.
A group of civilians in Taiwan are stepping up defense training amid rising tensions with China. Beijing’s claim to the island is expected to be discussed by China’s leader, Xi Jinping, and President Trump this week.
Asian nations worry that the president might trade security commitments for better economic terms with China during his planned meeting with Xi Jinping this week.
The governments have no official diplomatic or military ties. But a loose network led by company executives and volunteers is bridging some of that gulf.