Taiwan Reaffirms Arms Sale Plan as U.S. National Interest
Taiwan's officials said U.S. arms sales to the island serve American interests by protecting its freedom and securing global semiconductor supplies, following Trump's summit with China's Xi that yielded no progress on the dispute.
Taiwan's senior diplomatic officials said following a three-day summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Washington that providing weapons to Taiwan to protect its freedom and ensure global semiconductor distribution serves U.S. national interests. Trump and Xi concluded their summit on September 25 with no significant progress on multiple disputes, including Taiwan, which Beijing considers its own territory. Xi told Trump on September 24 that he hopes the United States will maintain the "correct stance" in opposing Taiwan's independence. Taiwan's Deputy Foreign Minister Francois Wu told reporters that maintaining military sales, giving Taiwan sufficient self-defense capability so it does not have to live under Chinese rule, and allowing Taiwan's semiconductor industry to continue contributing to the world are all important U.S. interests. Trump, who in May said he was delaying approval of a weapons sales agreement with Taiwan following talks with Xi in Beijing, has made no comment about Taiwan following the Washington summit and has not indicated how he will handle the pending arms sales agreement.
