Trump Says He Will Speak With Taiwan Leader, Calls Island a Problem

U.S. President Donald Trump said Wednesday he plans to speak with Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te before deciding on a new arms package for the island. The planned call would mark the first direct dialogue between the presidents of the United States and Taiwan since 1979.

Trump told reporters at Joint Base Andrews that he would call Lai, according to Reuters. He said the United States has the situation very well in hand after a recent meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. 1 billion in arms sales to Taiwan in December 2025.

The same official said Trump approved more arms sales to Taiwan in his first year of the current term than during all four years of the prior administration. Trump is expected to make a determination on a new arms package in a fairly short time.

Trump referred to Taiwan as the Taiwan problem during his remarks. He said he is not looking to have somebody go independent and wants both sides to cool down. China maintains there is only one China and that Taiwan is an inalienable part of its territory.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said Taiwan independence and cross-Strait peace are irreconcilable. The Taiwan Relations Act, passed in 1979, requires the United States to make defense articles and services available for Taiwan's self-defense.

“I’ll speak to him. I speak to everybody. We have that situation very well in hand. It was amazing, actually. ”

“Taiwan is an inalienable part of China’s territory. It is never a country, not in the past, and never in the future.”