The president's comments — who admitted that Xi had brought up U.S. arms sales to Taiwan in the conversation — could mark quite a radical turn. One of the arrangements of President Ronald Reagan's administration towards Taiwan in 1982 was the declaration that The United States will not consult with Beijing on arms sales to the island.
Trump though he assured that he was not changing American foreign policy in a conversation with the Chinese leader. “He mentioned it himself,” Trump said of Xi. — He talked to me about it, that's obvious. So what was I supposed to do? Say, “I'm not going to talk to you about this because I have an agreement from 1982?”
The president's statements leave the future of the arms contract with Taiwan worth $14 billion in doubt. (approx. PLN 51 billion), approved by Congress in January, is questionable.
“There is only one person who knows the answer to this question. You know who? Me.”
Trump's statement may cause serious concern among Taiwan supporters, who have feared for months that Trump's push for closer economic relations with China may weaken the current strong US support for the island. The Trump administration has regularly denied allegations that the president was abandoning Taiwan.
— Real haggling or negotiations on arms sales, consultations on what we will sell and what we won't sell: that would be a break with current practice, if that's what the Chinese really demanded and if the president was willing to accept it, said David Sacks, a former political and military expert at the U.S. diplomatic mission in Taipei.
Trump also refused to commit to defending Taiwan in case of an attack from China. As he told reporters, Xi asked him the same question earlier on Friday. “I don't want to say it,” he said. -I'm not going to say that. There is only one person who knows the answer to this question. You know who? I. Only me. President Xi asked me this question today. I said, “I don't talk about things like that.”
