JAKARTA - US President Donald Trump admitted that he would talk to Taiwan President Lai Ching-te about the possibility of a massive US arms sale. If this is realized, it will be a sharp deviation from US diplomatic tradition.
BBC International reported on Thursday, May 21, direct communication between US and Taiwanese leaders has been suspended since 1979, the moment when the US decided to break off formal relations with Taiwan to recognize the policy of the Chinese Government.
China claims Taiwan as its territory and has not ruled out the possibility of seizing it by force. Lai, who will serve as Taiwan's president in 2024, is behind one of the strongest efforts to strengthen the island's defenses.
On the one hand, despite breaking off formal ties, the US has long supported Taiwan but is bound by law to provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself. The US must also balance that to maintain diplomatic relations with China.
Since Trump's state visit, who met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, Taiwan has urged the US to immediately provide a package of arms sales.
When asked about it, Trump said he would speak to Lai before making a decision on the sale of US weapons.
"I'll talk to him. I talk to everybody... we'll work it out, the Taiwan thing," Trump said on Wednesday.
Trump later praised his relationship with the Chinese president as "extraordinary" after the two met last week.
In 1979, the US passed the Taiwan Relations Act which states that the US can "provide Taiwan with defensive weapons" - which is why the US continues to sell weapons to Taiwan.
Trump said he had not decided whether sales of a $14 billion arms package to Taiwan, which reportedly included anti-drone equipment and an air defense missile system, would continue.
According to a report in the Financial Times, China is currently delaying a proposed visit by the Pentagon's top policymaker, Elbridge Colby - saying it cannot agree to the visit until Trump decides how he will proceed with a weapons deal with Taiwan.
During Trump's visit to Beijing, China has made it clear that Taiwan is one of the biggest issues in its relationship with the US, with Xi warning of a "conflict" between the two superpowers if handled poorly.
Meanwhile, Trump dismissed the potential for conflict between the US and China over Taiwan. He said Xi felt "very strongly" about Taiwan. "I'm not making any commitments," he told reporters on Air Force One last week.
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