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May 15, 2026 / 5:44 PM EDT
/ CBS News
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Washington — Lawmakers in both parties say the U.S. should continue to provide arms to Taiwan after President Trump, at the end of his summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, said he hasn't decided whether to move forward with a pending arms sale to the island.Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One Friday after departing Beijing, Mr. Trump said he and Xi "talked a lot about Taiwan" during their summit and confirmed the Chinese leader had brought up the U.S. weapons sale. The president said he made "no commitment either way" on the issue and declined to publicly state whether the U.S. would defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese attack.The comments quickly drew attention on Capitol Hill, where Taiwan has long enjoyed strong bipartisan support and lawmakers have been pushing the administration to move ahead with a delayed $14 billion arms sale that Congress approved in January.Rep. Michael McCaul, a Texas Republican and former House Foreign Affairs Committee chairman, said Friday that the U.S. must "arm Taiwan so they can defend themselves for deterrence against Chairman Xi." McCaul said that during the summit, Xi was "very aggressive" regarding Taiwan and added that "most of what [Xi] talked about was Taiwan."Asked about the fact that the president has not yet made a decision on the arms sale, McCaul replied that there "there should be" a decision.During the summit, Xi told Mr. Trump that the Taiwan question is the most important issue in China-U.S. relations, according to a Chinese readout of their meeting. A Chinese ministry spokesperson said Xi made it clear that if Taiwan "is handled properly, the bilateral relationship will enjoy overall stability." If not, "the two countries will have clashes and even conflicts, putting the entire relationship in great jeopardy."The ministry said Xi also told Mr. Trump that "'Taiwan independence' and cross-Strait peace are as irreconcilable as fire and water."
