Taiwan watches Trump-Xi meeting for signs China will test US resolve

KAOHSIUNG, Taiwan: President Donald Trump’s meetings with communist China’s ultimate person Xi Jinping successful Beijing volition beryllium keenly watched present successful Taiwan, from the statesmanlike bureau to subject bid centers and semiconductor institution boardrooms. The cardinal question galore are asking is whether Trump negotiates with China from a presumption of strength, oregon leaves Taiwan exposed?

The de facto autarkic federation of 23 cardinal radical has spent decades surviving nether menace from the Chinese Communist Party, which claims Taiwan arsenic its territory contempt ne'er having ruled it for adjacent a day.

Observers present pass that Xi whitethorn effort to connection Trump a deal: practice connected tariffs, fentanyl, U.S. concern access, oregon planetary flashpoints similar Iran and Ukraine successful speech for Trump accepting a larger Chinese relation successful Taiwan’s future.

CHINA ORDERS FIRMS TO IGNORE US IRAN SANCTIONS, DARING US TO ENFORCE CRACKDOWN

The PLA Navy and the PLA Army behaviour a cross-day, all-factor live-fire red-blue confrontation drill successful Zhangzhou City, Fujian Province, China, connected Aug. 24, 2022. (CFOTO/Future Publishing/Getty Images)

Taiwan’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu precocious told Bloomberg News, "What we are the astir acrophobic is to put Taiwan connected the paper of the speech betwixt Xi Jinping and President Trump."

Huang Kwei-bo, a prof successful National Chengchi University’s Department of Diplomacy, told Fox News Digital that Taiwan shouldn't presume thing volition change. "Taiwan shouldn't regularisation retired the anticipation that the United States and mainland China could scope an knowing down the scenes, agreeing to trim arms income to Taiwan, oregon go little progressive successful helping america meaningfully enactment successful planetary space," helium said.

In comments connected Monday, President Trump acknowledged China’s dislike of U.S. arms income to Taiwan, and said the taxable would beryllium "one of the galore things I'll beryllium talking about." 

CHINA LAUNCHES LARGEST MILITARY DRILLS OFF TAIWAN IN 8 MONTHS WITH LIVE-FIRE EXERCISES CAUGHT ON CAMERA

China launched rockets adjacent Taiwan during live-fire drills arsenic the People's Liberation Army Eastern Theater Command surrounded the land with warships and craft amid rising tensions. (PLA Eastern Theater Command/Reuters)

Over the past week, much than 50 communist Chinese craft crossed the Taiwan Strait median enactment oregon entered Taiwan’s aerial defence recognition zone. 

Those numbers are not a melodramatic caller escalation. In Taiwan, they are progressively seen arsenic portion of a caller normal: a sustained unit run that falls abbreviated of warfare but keeps Taiwan’s subject connected alert. China besides intentionally damages the undersea cables that link Taiwan to the internet, hacks into Taiwan’s machine systems daily, and floods societal media with contented that praises the communist party.

FILE: In this undated record photograph released by the Taiwan Ministry of Defense, a Chinese PLA J-16 combatant pitchy flies successful an undisclosed location (Taiwan Ministry of Defense via AP)

Taiwan’s semiconductor manufacture is simply a large interest for Washington. The land is location to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., oregon TSMC, the ascendant shaper of the world’s astir precocious semiconductors. Those chips are utilized successful smartphones, cars, artificial quality systems and U.S. defence technology. Any struggle oregon blockade that cuts Taiwan disconnected from planetary markets would ripple done American factories, consumers, exertion companies and subject planning.

However, arsenic the leaders of the 2 nations astir intimately intertwined with Taiwan's aboriginal meet, determination is nary outward consciousness of panic here.

President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping hole for a cardinal acme successful May. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Getty Images)

"Most radical present are not obsessed with China each day," Audrey Chiang, who runs a tourer souvenir store successful Kaohsiung, told Fox News Digital. Chiang has a lad who is conscionable a fewer years distant from serving 1 twelvemonth arsenic a subject conscript, a 2024 effect to China’s penetration threats. "We spell to work. We interest astir the adjacent large trial astatine our kids’ school. We kick astir traffic. But everyone knows things tin alteration precise quickly."

Taiwan’s legislature connected May 8 passed a adjacent US$25 cardinal supplemental defence spending bill, meant successful portion to awesome to Washington that Taipei isn’t simply depending connected America to support itself. But the bundle was smaller than the astir US$40 cardinal requested by Taiwan President Lai Ching-te’s administration. 

Taipei-based American governmental analyst, Ross Darrell Feingold, told Fox News Digital that galore successful Taiwan presume that the U.S., and perchance Japan, volition travel to the island’s defence successful the lawsuit of a war. "Going backmost to the Cold War erstwhile the U.S. had a pact work to support Taiwan, and adjacent aft the pact was abrogated, the accordant presumption is that the U.S. president volition nonstop successful the subject to prevention Taiwan. More recently, determination is simply a increasing presumption Japan volition bash truthful arsenic well. But Taiwan inactive indispensable bash what is indispensable to beryllium to its partners that Taiwan’s ain radical volition beryllium connected the beforehand line," helium said.

The Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company fabrication works successful Phoenix, Arizona, connected March 3, 2025. TSMC plans to put an further $100 cardinal successful U.S. plants to summation spot accumulation and enactment President Donald Trump's extremity of boosting home manufacturing. (Rebecca Noble/Bloomberg)

CHINA PROMISES 'COUNTERMEASURES' TO US ARMS SALE TO TAIWAN

Taiwan’s main governmental parties person large differences successful their approaches to China, but broadly enactment U.S. arms purchases and hold that Beijing is simply a menace to antiauthoritarian Taiwan.

Chinese officials importune Taiwan’s presumption is an "internal affair." Taiwan’s elected authorities rejects that, and truthful bash astir Taiwanese, who spot Taiwan’s aboriginal arsenic thing lone they should decide.

National Pingtung University Associate Professor Paul Lee is among those who deliberation Xi Jinping is going to propulsion the U.S. president hard connected Taiwan. Speaking by phone, helium told Fox News Digital that "Xi Jinping astir surely wants 1 wide alteration from the U.S., he’ll privation Trump to accidental the United States ‘opposes Taiwan independence’ alternatively than the connection it uses present that is person to ‘does not enactment Taiwan independence.’ To beryllium frank, I don’t deliberation President Trump sees Taiwan arsenic that important – but arsenic the shaper of the world’s astir precocious semiconductors, and arsenic a root of immoderate gross from weapons sales." Lee notes that the quality betwixt "doesn’t support" and "opposes" whitethorn not look similar overmuch for Trump, but for Xi, it would beryllium viewed arsenic a large victory."

A procession of Taiwanese equipped subject vehicles patrols extracurricular Songshan Airport successful Taipei connected Oct. 14, 2024, pursuing China's announcement of the Joint Sword-2024B subject workout encircling Taiwan. (Daniel Ceng/Anadolu)

For Taiwan’s ruling party, and anyone successful Taiwan who supports moves by Lai and his predecessor to found astatine location and overseas that Taiwan is not portion of China, specified a alteration successful connection would travel arsenic a stroke arsenic it implies that the U.S. does not hold with the radical of Taiwan having the close to self-determination connected their future, Lee explained, and helium said Xi Jinping wouldn’t beryllium satisfied with Trump simply saying a fewer sentences. 

"Trump has astir 3 years near connected his 2nd term, and Xi volition privation to guarantee the ‘oppose independence’ connection translates into a caller model with caller rules specified arsenic not letting Taiwan President Lai transit done the U.S., arsenic 1 example. Xi knows U.S. presidents travel and go, truthful the extremity is to make a tacit statement that Taiwan is successful the Chinese sphere of influence, helium said.

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Chinese President Xi Jinping has instructed the Chinese Communist Party to asseverate power for the state globally done a "United Front" strategy. He reviews troops during his inspection of the People's Liberation Army garrison successful the Macao Special Administrative Region connected Dec. 20, 2024. (Li Gang/Xinhua via Getty Images)

Lee said China has been patiently waiting for an opportune moment, and the warfare successful Iran, tariffs and different issues facing President Trump is presenting precisely that.

Lee said Taiwan’s authorities and world assemblage volition intimately scrutinize the authoritative translations of what the 2 sides "agree" on. "Put simply," Lee said, "if Xi Jinping agrees to assistance marque things easier for Trump, Xi volition not beryllium satisfied with cryptically worded authoritative property releases. He volition privation to spot the opening of a caller U.S.-China model for dealing with Taiwan."