The meeting will take place on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, in the South Korean city of Gyeongju
North American President Donald Trump stated that he does not know whether he will discuss the situation in Taiwan with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, downplaying the topic on the eve of the first meeting between the two since 2019.
“I’m not sure if we’re going to talk about Taiwan. Maybe he’ll ask, but there’s not much to say. Taiwan is Taiwan,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One during the flight between Japan and South Korea.
The meeting will take place on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, in the South Korean city of Gyeongju.
Since returning to the White House at the beginning of the year, Trump has adopted an ambiguous stance regarding the future of the island, which he considers to have “robbed” the North American industry of semiconductor production. The North American leader stressed, however, that his administration is returning this production capacity to the USA.
Taiwan, where TSMC – the world’s largest chip manufacturer – is headquartered, is considered by Beijing to be an inalienable part of Chinese territory. The issue is usually on the agenda of high-level meetings between Chinese and North American officials.
In recent days, analysts have suggested that Xi may try to obtain concessions regarding Taiwan, taking advantage of Trump’s desire to reach an agreement to contain the trade war. However, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio assured that Washington will not abandon Taipei.
Trump has avoided committing to a possible military defense of the island in the event of a Chinese invasion, unlike his predecessor, Joe Biden, who reiterated this commitment on several occasions.
The current President imposed 20% tariffs on Taiwanese products and, according to the North American press, prevented the head of State of Taiwan, William Lai, from stopping in the USA last August.
Taipei detects increased Chinese military activity on the eve of meeting
Twenty-five Chinese military aircraft flew over Taiwan in the last 24 hours, the third largest daily incursion this month, on the eve of the meeting between US President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.
In the daily report, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense reported that Chinese planes, including fighters and bombers, operated between 06:00 on Tuesday (22:00 on Monday, in Lisbon) and 06:00 today (22:00 on Tuesday, in Lisbon), without entering the island’s airspace.
According to the ministry, 23 of the 25 aircraft crossed the midline of the Taiwan Strait and entered the northern and southwestern zones of the island’s self-proclaimed Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).
“The Armed Forces of the Republic of China [nome oficial de Taiwan] monitored the situation and mobilized patrol planes, Navy ships and coastal missile systems in response to the detected activities,” the statement said.
The movements occur on the eve of the bilateral meeting scheduled for Thursday, in Gyeongju, South Korea, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, in which the North American and Chinese leaders are expected to address, among other topics, the situation in the Taiwan Strait and the trade war.
But the North American President hinted today that he may not discuss the issue with Xi Jinping. “I’m not sure if we’re going to talk about Taiwan. Maybe he’ll ask me, but there’s not much to say. Taiwan is Taiwan,” he said aboard the presidential plane Air Force One, en route to South Korea.
According to analysts, Beijing may try to obtain concessions on Taiwan, taking advantage of Trump’s rush to reach a trade agreement, although US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has sought to reassure Taipei.
According to the CNA news agency, the director of Taiwan’s National Security Council, Tsai Ming-yen, assured today that, if the issue formally enters the summit’s agenda, US advisors will prepare in advance the “key points” of the US position so that Trump can express it “in an appropriate way”.
Tsai also stressed that communication between Taipei and Washington “has been fluid” and that the US will inform Taiwan, through appropriate diplomatic channels, about the progress of the meeting.
