WEST PALM BEACH, FL: U.S. President Donald Trump claimed on Sunday that his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, has provided assurances that Beijing will not pursue its long-stated goal of unifying Taiwan with the mainland while Trump is in office.
The assertion was made during an excerpt of an interview with the CBS program “60 Minutes” that aired on Sunday.
“He has openly said, and his people have openly said at meetings, ‘We would never do anything while President Trump is president,’ because they know the consequences,” President Trump stated.
The remarks come just days after the two leaders met in South Korea, a meeting that, according to the U.S. President, focused primarily on U.S.-China trade tensions, and did not specifically include a discussion on the contentious issue of Taiwan. Despite this, President Trump expressed confidence that China would refrain from military action against the self-governed island during his administration.
Ambiguity on U.S. Military Response Persists
When pressed on whether he would order U.S. forces to defend Taiwan if China launched an attack, President Trump maintained the long-standing policy of “strategic ambiguity,” declining to give a direct commitment.
“You’ll find out if it happens, and he understands the answer to that,” Trump told the interviewer, adding cryptically, “I can’t give away my secrets. The other side knows.”
Beijing Reaffirms Core Position
In response to the U.S. President’s claims, the Chinese embassy in Washington did not directly confirm any specific assurances given to President Trump.
Liu Pengyu, a spokesman for the Chinese embassy, issued a statement reiterating Beijing’s unyielding position: “The Taiwan question is China’s internal affair, and it is the core of China’s core interests. How to resolve the Taiwan question is a matter for the Chinese people ourselves, and only the Chinese people can decide it.” He added that China “will never allow any person or force to separate Taiwan from China in any way.”
The White House has not yet provided further details on when or where President Xi or other Chinese officials allegedly conveyed this commitment to halt action on Taiwan for the duration of the Republican leader’s term. The U.S. maintains its policy under the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act, ensuring Taiwan has the resources for self-defense and opposing any unilateral change of status by Beijing.
