Amidst Grand Trump-Xi Summit, Wall Street Journal Argues America's Real Key Interest is in Taiwan
The Wall Street Journal argued that despite President Trump's visit to China, America's true strategic interest lies in Taiwan. The paper praised Taiwan's recent increase in its defense budget, noting it shows a determination to enhance its self-defense capabilities.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: May 14, 2026 at 20:22
- 🔍 Collected: May 14, 2026 at 20:32 (9 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: May 15, 2026 at 03:37 (7h 5m after Collected)
(CNA, Washington, 14th) The Wall Street Journal pointed out that while US President Trump, currently visiting Beijing, hopes to strike a major deal in China, the future of America's economy and strategy is in fact more tied to Taiwan, and Taiwan's progress in self-defense is worthy of attention.
The Editorial Board of The Wall Street Journal, in a piece titled "Taiwan's Advance on Self-Defense," wrote that Taiwan recently passed an additional defense budget of approximately NT$780 billion, which had been stalled due to a minority government. This amount is lower than the NT$1.25 trillion plan originally proposed by President Lai Ching-te.
President Lai hopes to increase defense spending to 5% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 2030, but the opposition Kuomintang (KMT) and the Taiwan People's Party (TPP) currently hold a majority in the Legislative Yuan.
This additional defense budget appears not to include key projects such as some missile defense systems and indigenous drone development, which are crucial to convincing Xi Jinping that an invasion of Taiwan would be a catastrophic mistake. Depending on how the budget is allocated, Taiwan's defense spending this year is expected to reach about 3% of GDP.
The Wall Street Journal noted that such defense spending is still insufficient in the face of the Chinese Communist Party's increasing aggression.
However, President Lai must make Taiwanese society understand the real threat without causing public panic. This is one of the most daunting challenges in global geopolitics, and compromise and incremental progress are part of democratic politics.
While Taiwan engages in the democratic politics of negotiation and persuasion, Xi Jinping's police state is arresting defense officials and even sentencing them to death with a two-year reprieve.
The Wall Street Journal stated that Donald Trump tends to view the world from a perspective of power politics. While such realism has its value, it could also lead him to misjudge America's "balance sheet" in Asia. Taiwan is a technological powerhouse with the rule of law, whereas China, as long as it is ruled by Xi Jinping, can never become a society based on the rule of law.
Taiwan is demonstrating its determination to defend the free world, and Trump can support Taiwan's efforts to strengthen its defenses by advancing a stalled arms sale to Taiwan. This arms sale was postponed to ensure a smooth Trump-Xi summit this week.
The Wall Street Journal concluded that while the grand summit is being held in Beijing, America's true core interest to be protected is actually across the strait in Taiwan. (Compiled by: Hung Pei-ying) 1150514
The Editorial Board of The Wall Street Journal, in a piece titled "Taiwan's Advance on Self-Defense," wrote that Taiwan recently passed an additional defense budget of approximately NT$780 billion, which had been stalled due to a minority government. This amount is lower than the NT$1.25 trillion plan originally proposed by President Lai Ching-te.
President Lai hopes to increase defense spending to 5% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 2030, but the opposition Kuomintang (KMT) and the Taiwan People's Party (TPP) currently hold a majority in the Legislative Yuan.
This additional defense budget appears not to include key projects such as some missile defense systems and indigenous drone development, which are crucial to convincing Xi Jinping that an invasion of Taiwan would be a catastrophic mistake. Depending on how the budget is allocated, Taiwan's defense spending this year is expected to reach about 3% of GDP.
The Wall Street Journal noted that such defense spending is still insufficient in the face of the Chinese Communist Party's increasing aggression.
However, President Lai must make Taiwanese society understand the real threat without causing public panic. This is one of the most daunting challenges in global geopolitics, and compromise and incremental progress are part of democratic politics.
While Taiwan engages in the democratic politics of negotiation and persuasion, Xi Jinping's police state is arresting defense officials and even sentencing them to death with a two-year reprieve.
The Wall Street Journal stated that Donald Trump tends to view the world from a perspective of power politics. While such realism has its value, it could also lead him to misjudge America's "balance sheet" in Asia. Taiwan is a technological powerhouse with the rule of law, whereas China, as long as it is ruled by Xi Jinping, can never become a society based on the rule of law.
Taiwan is demonstrating its determination to defend the free world, and Trump can support Taiwan's efforts to strengthen its defenses by advancing a stalled arms sale to Taiwan. This arms sale was postponed to ensure a smooth Trump-Xi summit this week.
The Wall Street Journal concluded that while the grand summit is being held in Beijing, America's true core interest to be protected is actually across the strait in Taiwan. (Compiled by: Hung Pei-ying) 1150514