U.S. President Donald Trump has moved to distance himself from Taiwan ahead of his September meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The move contrasts with his earlier announcement that he would sell weapons to Taiwan. Industry observers attribute it to Trump being mindful of Xi.
The South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported Sunday, citing multiple sources, that Trump is unlikely to hold a phone call with Taiwan President Lai Ching-te anytime soon. Despite Trump recently expressing willingness to speak with the person "running" Taiwan, there has been no movement toward arranging a call.
Two sources familiar with the matter said there had been no progress on the call, which Trump would need to initiate. Three other sources predicted that if the U.S. held a call with Lai, it would likely derail the summit with Xi expected to take place in Washington in September. There is concern that the detente reached by the two leaders in May could also be threatened.
Trump's move to distance himself from Taiwan stems from a similar past case. In late 2016, when then-President-elect Trump received a congratulatory call from Tsai Ing-wen, then Taiwan's president, China gave the Trump administration a cold reception. That call was the first direct contact since 1979, and China lodged a formal diplomatic protest and criticized it as Taiwan's "small trick."
The cautious stance also appeared in arms sales. SCMP, citing multiple sources, predicted there would be no announcement of new weapons sales to Taiwan in the short term. However, some packages could be announced or approved later.
Lin Chia-lung, Taiwan's foreign minister, said on Friday in response to a question about the timing of a Trump-Lai call that he could not speak for Trump, but added, "We are ready to talk at any time." Lin described the delay in arms sales as a "technical issue."
China has long regarded Taiwan as part of its territory and declared it would not rule out unification by force if necessary. The U.S., however, has opposed any attempt to occupy Taiwan by force and pledged to supply weapons.
Trump's mindfulness of Xi was also evident at the Group of Seven (G7) summit in France. Referring to his meeting with Xi, he said, "We have a G2 meeting coming up." Trump has repeatedly referred to the U.S. and China, the world's first- and second-largest economies, as the "G2."
Bonnie Glaser, director of the Indo-Pacific program at the Washington-based German Marshall Fund, expected the Taiwan arms sales to be announced "sometime after" Xi's visit to the U.S. "A call between Trump and Xi would scuttle the visit and shake the fragile stability achieved in Beijing," she said.
Meanwhile, Trump has invited Xi to the U.S. on September 24. The Chinese Embassy in Washington said the date has not been confirmed but that autumn is under consideration.
