BS BULLETIN:
- U.S. Ambassador to China David Perdue says President Trump asked Xi Jinping whether China would like to buy American weapons.
- The revelation came as Perdue defended Trump against concerns that Washington is holding up a major weapons package for Taiwan.
- Perdue did not identify what weapons Trump had in mind or indicate that an actual sale to Beijing was under negotiation.
Xi Jinping apparently complained about America selling weapons to Taiwan.
Donald Trump had an unusual response: Would China like to buy some, too?
U.S. Ambassador to China David Perdue dropped that remarkable detail Sunday while appearing on “Fox News Sunday,” where Shannon Bream questioned him about the administration’s handling of Taiwan.
China has repeatedly demanded that Washington stop supplying weapons to Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its territory. The United States, meanwhile, is required under the Taiwan Relations Act to provide Taiwan with defensive capabilities.
Perdue said Trump has defended those sales directly to Xi.
“President Trump continues to say, ‘Hey, we sell arms to other people around the world,’” Perdue told Bream. “He actually asked President Xi, would he like to buy some, at one point.”
Perdue didn’t say exactly when Trump made the offer, what weapons might have been involved or how Xi responded.
The disclosure comes at a particularly interesting moment.
A roughly $14 billion weapons package for Taiwan has been awaiting Trump’s approval for months. After his May summit with Xi in Beijing, Trump described the Taiwan arms package as a “very good negotiating chip.”
Xi again raised Taiwan during his Washington visit last week, according to Chinese state media, pressing Trump to oppose Taiwanese independence.
The idea of actually selling American military equipment to Beijing would be considerably more complicated than Trump’s reported pitch suggests. U.S. restrictions on defense exports to China have existed for decades, and Perdue gave no indication that the administration was pursuing an actual weapons deal.
What he did reveal was another glimpse at Trump’s approach to negotiations with Xi: Even one of the biggest points of friction between Washington and Beijing can apparently become the opening for a sales pitch.
DBS WIRE SOURCES:
- Mediaite — Trump offered to sell American weapons to China’s Xi Jinping, U.S. ambassador says Mediaite
- Associated Press — Trump asked China’s president if he wants to buy U.S. arms, ambassador says WKMG
- The Guardian/Reuters — Trump asked Xi if China would like to buy U.S. weapons theguardian.com
- Associated Press — Trump and Xi meet amid tensions over Taiwan, trade and AI
