The U.S. president said today (the 12th) that he will discuss U.S. arms sales to Taiwan with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, during his trip to Beijing this week. “I will have that conversation with President Xi. President Xi would prefer that we not do it [sell arms to Taiwan], and I will have that conversation,” Donald Trump said when asked by reporters in the Oval Office at the White House.
Trump made these remarks despite the United States’ historic position – established since Ronald Reagan’s presidency in 1982 and known as the “six assurances” – which stipulates that Washington does not consult Beijing on decisions regarding the sale of defensive weapons to Taiwan. Donald Trump, who arrives in Beijing on Wednesday evening, also downplayed the risk of a Chinese invasion of the island.
“I don’t think that’s going to happen,” he said regarding Taiwan, noting that his “excellent relationship” with Xi Jinping should prevent any military action by Beijing. “Xi Jinping knows I don’t want that to happen,” he added.
The Republican also emphasized that he maintains “an excellent relationship” with the Chinese leader, with whom he said he is closing “many deals.” “I have a lot of respect for him, and I hope he respects me too. He didn’t respect our previous administration, Joe Biden’s,” he said.
Read more: Taiwan confident in relationship with US ahead of Xi-Trump summit (with video)
Trump arrives in the Chinese capital for two days of meetings with Xi Jinping on a highly anticipated visit, after it was postponed following the U.S. and Israeli offensive against Iran. The two leaders are expected to discuss, among other issues, arms sales and U.S. support for the island, after Xi urged Trump in February to “act with caution” regarding the shipment of weapons to Taipei.
This week’s summit will be the second meeting between the leaders of the two superpowers since the start of Trump’s second term, following last year’s meeting in South Korea.
Donald Trump also indicated that he will ask Xi Jinping to release Jimmy Lai, a former pro-democracy media mogul from Hong Kong, who was sentenced in February to 20 years in prison for violating national security. The U.S. president also stated that he intends to raise in Beijing the case of a Christian pastor detained in China, identified by the U.S. press as Ezra Jin.
Trump will be accompanied on the visit by 16 executives from some of the largest U.S. companies, according to The New York Times. The delegation includes Elon Musk of Tesla, Tim Cook of Apple, Larry Fink of BlackRock, Kelly Ortberg of Boeing, David Solomon of Goldman Sachs, Cristiano Amon of Qualcomm, Stephen Schwarzman of Blackstone, and Larry Culp of GE Aerospace.
Other participants include the CEOs of Cargill, Citi, Coherent, Illumina, Mastercard, Micron Technology, and Visa. The only women in the delegation will be Jane Fraser of Citi and Dina Powell of Meta.
Trump intends to discuss with Beijing the creation of a bilateral investment commission and another dedicated to trade, according to The New York Times, citing members of the U.S. administration. Elon Musk’s presence in the delegation is seen as a sign of a rapprochement with Trump, following the businessman’s departure from the government in May 2025, where he led the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, created to reduce public spending.
Trump and Musk drifted apart following a clash over the budget package promoted by the U.S. president. Since Trump’s return to the White House, there has been speculation that Musk could play an informal mediating role with China, given his frequent praise for Tesla’s presence in the Chinese market.
