US Ambassador to China David Perdue said Sunday that Washington’s policy toward Taiwan has not changed after Xi Jinping’s visit to the United States last week.
According to Bloomberg, Perdue said on Fox News Sunday: 「We do not support Taiwan independence, and we do not support coercion.」 His remarks were the first clear statement from a US official on Taiwan policy after the Trump-Xi summit.
First explicit post-summit statement on Taiwan
After the summit, Trump was asked about Taiwan on Saturday and said, 「We didn’t spend a lot of time talking about Taiwan」 and 「He understands exactly how I feel.」 He did not restate Washington’s long-standing position on Taiwan, prompting outside interpretation of the comments.
ABMedia had previously noted in its summit coverage that the White House readout did not mention Taiwan. Perdue’s interview marked the first direct clarification from the US side that its Taiwan policy language remained unchanged after Xi’s state visit.
Perdue says Trump raises Taiwan arms sales in every meeting with Xi
Bloomberg reported that Perdue said Trump and Xi discuss US arms sales to Taiwan every time they meet, while the US position itself has stayed the same.
The Associated Press reported that Fox News Sunday host Shannon Bream cited concerns from lawmakers in both US parties over delays to Taiwan assistance plans and weapons orders, and asked whether Washington was sidelining Taiwan to placate Xi. Perdue rejected that suggestion, saying Trump was 「the toughest on Taiwan that I’ve ever seen」 and that the United States had already sold Taiwan a lot of weapons.
Perdue then disclosed that when Trump explained arms sales to Taiwan to Xi, he downplayed them as one item within broader US global weapons sales. Perdue said Trump would say: 「Hey, we sell weapons to other people around the world too.」 He added that Trump even once asked Xi whether he wanted to buy some. Perdue did not say when that exchange took place.
The AP said an actual US arms sale to China would overturn decades of US policy toward China and Taiwan.
$14 billion Taiwan arms package still paused
The AP also said China has long pressed Washington to stop selling weapons to Taiwan, with that pressure especially visible during the Trump-Xi meeting in Beijing in May. After that meeting, the United States paused a record $14 billion arms package for Taiwan. Trump at the time described arms sales to Taiwan as a 「very good bargaining chip.」
Separately, Chinese state media reported that Xi asked Trump during last week’s White House talks to oppose Taiwan independence.
Under the Taiwan Relations Act, the United States is obligated to provide Taiwan with what it needs for self-defense. At the same time, US leaders have long kept their position ambiguous on whether American forces would intervene if China attacked Taiwan. ABMedia also noted that it had reported in September 2025 that Trump put on hold a separate $400 million military aid plan for Taiwan, a move that outside observers at the time viewed as paving the way for the Trump-Xi meeting.
Policy language unchanged, arms sales still part of the talks
Perdue’s comments pointed in two directions at once. The official wording of US policy toward Taiwan has not shifted, but arms sales to Taiwan remain a standing topic whenever Trump and Xi meet. The $14 billion package is still on hold.
The report said the next points to watch are whether that arms package is resumed, and whether Trump raises Taiwan again during the US-China 「super intelligence」 dialogue in November and at APEC and G20 meetings later this year.