National Security Official: Trump's Remarks on Taiwan Send 3 Signals, Including Arms Sales Talks Only with Taiwan
Following the Trump-Xi meeting, a national security official stated today that recent remarks from the White House, State Department, and President Trump himself convey three major signals: U.S. policy toward Taiwan is unchanged, maintaining the status quo is a core interest, and arms sales to Taiwan will be discussed only with Taiwan. This shows the U.S. has not accepted Beijing's limitations on Taiwan.
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- 📰 Published: May 16, 2026 at 17:22
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Central News Agency, Taipei, 16th — Regarding U.S. statements on Taiwan after the Trump-Xi meeting, a national security official said today that remarks from the White House, State Department, and President Trump can be summarized into three major signals: U.S. policy toward Taiwan is unchanged, maintaining the status quo is a core interest, and arms sales to Taiwan will be discussed only with Taiwan. This indicates that the U.S. has not accepted Beijing's restrictions on Taiwan, nor has it changed its existing policy stance.
After his meeting with Xi in Beijing, President Trump said in an interview with Fox News that he does not want to see Taiwan move toward independence, emphasizing the maintenance of the status quo, and mentioned a decision on a $14 billion arms sale to Taiwan would be made soon.
DPP Legislator Chen Kuan-ting stated today that Trump's views and wording are not significantly different from previous U.S. presidents' stances on regional situations, still handling the Taiwan Strait issue with relative ambiguity, essentially within the scope of strategic ambiguity, which appears to align with past U.S.-Taiwan tacit understanding and practices.
Regarding Trump's successive interviews mentioning Taiwan policy after the summit, the national security official pointed out that one should observe the overall statements made by the White House, the State Department, and Trump himself on different occasions before and after the meeting. The signals released are largely consistent, boiling down to three points: no change in Taiwan policy, the status quo is key, and how to sell arms is discussed only with Taiwan.
The official analyzed, first, that the Taiwan policy is unchanged. Secretary of State Marco Rubio clearly stated after the meeting, 'U.S. policy on Taiwan has not changed as of today, as of this meeting.' This was the most direct policy confirmation from the U.S. executive branch after the Trump-Xi meeting, refuting Chinese President Xi Jinping's warning that the Taiwan issue could lead to conflict. The White House also promoted Rubio's statement on social media.
When Trump was asked in a Fox News interview if U.S. policy toward Taiwan had changed, he replied bluntly, 'No, nothing's changed.' The official said this occurred after the meeting and in a non-diplomatic setting, marking the first time Trump himself publicly made such a clear statement. The President and Secretary of State making successive statements within 24 hours sends a very clear signal.
Second, maintaining the status quo is a core interest. The official said that in his interviews, Trump repeatedly mentioned Xi's constant expression of the Taiwan independence issue. However, observing the full context of Trump's remarks, including telling China to 'calm down,' shows that Trump is not concerned with the concept of 'independence' itself, nor does he want to clearly define Taiwan's status. Trump does not want any action that breaks the status quo.
The official explained that Trump's statement about not wanting to see Taiwan declare independence and then the U.S. having to fly 9,500 miles to fight a war means he doesn't want to be dragged into a war risk for a situation that would disrupt the status quo and harm the core interests of the U.S. and all parties. This is not about helping Beijing define Taiwan's political identity, which is very clear. Moreover, former President Tsai Ing-wen and current President Lai Ching-te have both clearly stated that Taiwan is already a sovereign and independent country, so there is no issue of declaring independence.
Third, arms sales to Taiwan are discussed only with Taiwan. When asked if he would approve the over $10 billion arms sale to Taiwan, Trump's reply was 'maybe I will, maybe I won't,' and he refused to disclose the key considerations for his decision. This shows Trump clearly distinguishes Taiwan from China in arms sales matters. Rubio also said arms sales 'did not feature prominently' in the Trump-Xi meeting, and Trump stated more clearly that he gave Xi no response or promise.
As for Trump's comment on Air Force One about communicating with 'you know who, the person currently in charge of Taiwan affairs' before making a decision, the official noted that it is quite clear who this person is: the counterpart for arms sales discussions is Taiwan, not Beijing. The idea of using arms sales as a bargaining chip, in this context, is more of a warning to Beijing not to keep trying to disrupt the status quo.
Regarding whether discussing arms sales to Taiwan at the Trump-Xi meeting violates the second of the Six Assurances to Taiwan by former President Reagan in 1982, which states 'The United States has not agreed to consult with the PRC on arms sales to Taiwan,' the official said that although Xi made various demands, he only received no response from the U.S. side. Trump did not allow Xi to bargain with him on the issue of arms sales to Taiwan. (Editor: Lin Ker-lun) 1150516
After his meeting with Xi in Beijing, President Trump said in an interview with Fox News that he does not want to see Taiwan move toward independence, emphasizing the maintenance of the status quo, and mentioned a decision on a $14 billion arms sale to Taiwan would be made soon.
DPP Legislator Chen Kuan-ting stated today that Trump's views and wording are not significantly different from previous U.S. presidents' stances on regional situations, still handling the Taiwan Strait issue with relative ambiguity, essentially within the scope of strategic ambiguity, which appears to align with past U.S.-Taiwan tacit understanding and practices.
Regarding Trump's successive interviews mentioning Taiwan policy after the summit, the national security official pointed out that one should observe the overall statements made by the White House, the State Department, and Trump himself on different occasions before and after the meeting. The signals released are largely consistent, boiling down to three points: no change in Taiwan policy, the status quo is key, and how to sell arms is discussed only with Taiwan.
The official analyzed, first, that the Taiwan policy is unchanged. Secretary of State Marco Rubio clearly stated after the meeting, 'U.S. policy on Taiwan has not changed as of today, as of this meeting.' This was the most direct policy confirmation from the U.S. executive branch after the Trump-Xi meeting, refuting Chinese President Xi Jinping's warning that the Taiwan issue could lead to conflict. The White House also promoted Rubio's statement on social media.
When Trump was asked in a Fox News interview if U.S. policy toward Taiwan had changed, he replied bluntly, 'No, nothing's changed.' The official said this occurred after the meeting and in a non-diplomatic setting, marking the first time Trump himself publicly made such a clear statement. The President and Secretary of State making successive statements within 24 hours sends a very clear signal.
Second, maintaining the status quo is a core interest. The official said that in his interviews, Trump repeatedly mentioned Xi's constant expression of the Taiwan independence issue. However, observing the full context of Trump's remarks, including telling China to 'calm down,' shows that Trump is not concerned with the concept of 'independence' itself, nor does he want to clearly define Taiwan's status. Trump does not want any action that breaks the status quo.
The official explained that Trump's statement about not wanting to see Taiwan declare independence and then the U.S. having to fly 9,500 miles to fight a war means he doesn't want to be dragged into a war risk for a situation that would disrupt the status quo and harm the core interests of the U.S. and all parties. This is not about helping Beijing define Taiwan's political identity, which is very clear. Moreover, former President Tsai Ing-wen and current President Lai Ching-te have both clearly stated that Taiwan is already a sovereign and independent country, so there is no issue of declaring independence.
Third, arms sales to Taiwan are discussed only with Taiwan. When asked if he would approve the over $10 billion arms sale to Taiwan, Trump's reply was 'maybe I will, maybe I won't,' and he refused to disclose the key considerations for his decision. This shows Trump clearly distinguishes Taiwan from China in arms sales matters. Rubio also said arms sales 'did not feature prominently' in the Trump-Xi meeting, and Trump stated more clearly that he gave Xi no response or promise.
As for Trump's comment on Air Force One about communicating with 'you know who, the person currently in charge of Taiwan affairs' before making a decision, the official noted that it is quite clear who this person is: the counterpart for arms sales discussions is Taiwan, not Beijing. The idea of using arms sales as a bargaining chip, in this context, is more of a warning to Beijing not to keep trying to disrupt the status quo.
Regarding whether discussing arms sales to Taiwan at the Trump-Xi meeting violates the second of the Six Assurances to Taiwan by former President Reagan in 1982, which states 'The United States has not agreed to consult with the PRC on arms sales to Taiwan,' the official said that although Xi made various demands, he only received no response from the U.S. side. Trump did not allow Xi to bargain with him on the issue of arms sales to Taiwan. (Editor: Lin Ker-lun) 1150516