President Trump came to Beijing wanting to focus on trade and investment. His host, President Xi Jinping of China, quickly showed that he would not let his own priorities be sidelined, above all Taiwan.
At the start of a two-day summit Thursday morning, Mr. Xi spoke loftily about cooperation. But after journalists were sent out of the room and the real discussions began, he laid down a warning about Taiwan, the island-democracy that Beijing claims as its own territory.
With pointed rhetoric and military exercises, China has made clear that it could one day try to take the island by force. Taiwan relies on political and military support from the United States to deter that threat, and Mr. Trump is weighing whether to approve a weapons sale to Taiwan worth about $14 billion, after signing off on an $11 billion deal last year.
In a few words, Mr. Xi signaled on Thursday that U.S. support for Taiwan, including the weapons sales, could remain a sore point in relations.
“The Taiwan issue is the most critical issue in China-U.S. relations,” Mr. Xi said, according to an official summary of his remarks to Mr. Trump issued by Xinhua, China’s state news agency. If Chinese concerns over Taiwan were “handled well,” he added, relations between Beijing and Washington could remain stable.
“If handled poorly, the two countries will collide or even clash, putting the entire U.S.-China relationship in an extremely dangerous situation,” Mr. Xi said. “The U.S. must exercise the utmost caution in handling the Taiwan issue.”
The Chinese summary of Mr. Xi’s remarks did not say whether he or his officials had directly raised U.S. military sales to Taiwan with Mr. Trump. A White House summary of the talks did not mention Taiwan at all.
But Mr. Xi’s remarks — presented in clear, direct language early in the summit, and highlighted by official Chinese news outlets — appeared to be one of his blunter warnings so far in an effort to wear down Mr. Trump’s willingness to support Taiwan.
“Xi’s warnings about Taiwan make clear that commercial calm depends on Washington handling Taiwan with caution,” said Craig Singleton, the China Program Senior Director at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies in Washington.
Mr. Xi’s remarks were “consistent with Beijing’s longstanding position,” Mr. Singleton said. “But the setting matters,” he added. “Xi put Taiwan at the center of a summit Trump wants to define around deals and personal diplomacy.”
Mr. Xi hopes to at least slow any decision by Mr. Trump to sign off on the $14 billion weapons sale. Last week, Taiwan’s legislature approved $25 billion in special funding to pay for the missiles and other weapons from the United States, and members of Congress have urged Mr. Trump to go ahead with the deal.
But the Trump administration has held off on approving the sale to avoid upsetting Mr. Xi ahead of this week’s summit, U.S. officials said earlier this year. Mr. Xi already warned Mr. Trump in a February phone call that he should handle arms sales to the Taiwan with “extreme caution.”
“Xi hopes to create a strong impression in Trump that from Beijing’s perspective, Taiwan is the issue that would make or break U.S.-China relations,” said William Yang, a senior analyst in Taiwan for the International Crisis Group, which monitors and tries to resolve conflicts. “I think he will be waiting to see if Trump will personally take his warning on board and decide to further delay the $14 billion package.”
Washington switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing in 1979. As the United States normalized relations with China, Congress also passed the Taiwan Relations Act, which committed the United States to providing enough arms and military capabilities to Taiwan for the island to defend itself. This law states that the quality and quantity of these arms would be based on the U.S. assessment of Taiwan’s needs.
Taiwan considers the weapons sales essential for ensuring its defense against a potential Chinese invasion. Since 1979, Taiwan has received tens of billions of dollars’ worth of American arms, including F-16 fighter jets, missiles, warships, tanks, air defense systems and artillery units. Some of that arsenal is aging.
After Mr. Xi’s warning on Thursday, officials in Taiwan quickly responded that Beijing has been the source of tensions across the strait. In private, Taiwanese politicians have expressed hope that members of Mr. Trump’s team who have long supported their island would make sure that the new arms sales are not delayed.
“China’s military threats are the sole cause” for instability in the Taiwan Strait and the region,” Michelle Lee, a spokeswoman for the Taiwanese government, said at a news conference when asked about Mr. Xi’s comments. She said that Taiwan had maintained close contact with Washington throughout the summit preparations.
“We are deeply grateful for the longstanding support the United States has provided to our country,” she said.
Additional reporting by Lily Kuo, Amy Chang Chienand Pei-Lin Wu
