Lawmakers from both parties are watching closely for any signs President Donald Trump’s summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping could affect future U.S. support to Taiwan, as questions swirl around the future of a proposed $14 billion weapons package for the island.
“It’ll be interesting to see what he gives away on Taiwan,” Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told reporters Thursday. She also noted that the White House readout of the Trump-Xi meeting “didn’t mention Taiwan at all.”
During the summit, Xi warned Trump that mishandling Taiwan could damage relations between the two countries and lead to conflict, according to Chinese state media and reports from the meeting. Beijing also described Taiwan as the “most important” issue in U.S.-China relations.
Trump has not publicly responded in detail to Xi’s warning. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Thursday that U.S. policy toward Taiwan remained “unchanged” after the summit.
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Trump struck a notably warm tone toward Xi during the summit, repeatedly praising the Chinese leader and emphasizing cooperation, economic ties and a “stable” relationship between the two countries.
Still, it remains unclear exactly what Trump and Xi discussed privately about Taiwan, including whether future U.S. arms sales were discussed.
That uncertainty is fueling concern in Congress, especially as lawmakers watch the fate of a proposed $14 billion Taiwan weapons package that has been ready for the president’s approval since at least March but reportedly held under wraps in the lead-up to the China trip. Lawmakers fear the administration could delay approving the package further as it tries to stabilize relations with Beijing, which strongly opposes U.S. arms sales to Taiwan.
The package does not need congressional approval, but the administration needs to formally notify Congress of the sale under the Arms Export Control Act. From there, Congress has a review period during which it could try to block the deal.
The arms package reportedly includes advanced interceptor missiles and would be the largest-ever package for Taiwan. It would follow an earlier roughly $11 billion Taiwan arms package sale late last year — though many of those weapons remain tied up in a broader backlog of U.S. weapons deliveries to the Island.
Shaheen said she expected Beijing would likely pressure Trump to halt or delay the proposed package.
“My guess is there will be pressure as part of this meeting to discourage the United States from providing that 14 billion,” Shaheen said. “I hope that Congress will continue to urge the administration to move forward with the sales.”
Republicans also signaled they wanted the U.S. to maintain its position on Taiwan.
Sen. Thom Tillis said Thursday Congress remained firmly supportive of Taiwan and said he delivered that message directly during a recent bipartisan trip to the island in late March.
“Current posture of the United States Congress is one that supports Taiwan, without exception,” Tillis said.
Congress has long played a major role in shaping U.S. support for Taiwan, particularly through the Taiwan Relations Act, a 1979 law that required the U.S. to provide Taiwan with defensive weapons after Washington formally switched diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to the People’s Republic of China. The law remains one of the main foundations of U.S. support for Taiwan and arms sales to the island.
Tillis said lawmakers discussed Taiwan’s defense spending during the visit and praised a compromise defense package approved there.
Republican Sens. Pete Ricketts and James Landford also said the U.S. should maintain its current Taiwan policy.
“We should continue to commit to our position on Taiwan,” Ricketts said Thursday.
Earlier this month, Shaheen joined Tillis and Republican Sen. John Curtis in a bipartisan letter urging the administration to move forward with the Taiwan weapons package. The lawmakers argued that continued arms sales are necessary to deter China and maintain stability in the Taiwan Strait.
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