TRUMP OFFERED TO SELL ARMS TO CHINA, US AMBASSADOR SAYS

US President Donald Trump offered to sell weapons to China while hosting President Xi Jinping in Washington last week, according to David Perdue, the US ambassador to China. Perdue told Fox News in an interview aired on Sunday that "President Trump continues to say, hey, we sell arms to other people around the world. He actually asked President Xi would he like to buy some at one point." He said the two leaders discuss further arms sales "every time they get together" and that US policy has not changed. Following the interview, the White House told the New York Times it had no plans to sell arms to China, and the state department said "US law prohibits arms sales to China and there is no offer or plan to sell arms to China."

The remarks came during discussion of long-running US arms sales to Taiwan, which China regards as part of its territory despite never having governed it. Under the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act, Washington is required to supply Taiwan with weapons for its defence, and a $11.1 billion package was approved in December, which Perdue described as more arms to Taiwan than under any president since 1979. One report put a pending package at $14 billion, which Trump had described in May as a "very good negotiating chip" in dealings with Beijing, raising questions over Washington's commitment to Taiwan's defence. During his Washington visit, Xi urged Trump to oppose "Taiwan independence", according to China's Xinhua news agency.

Before Perdue's interview, Taiwan's deputy foreign minister, Chen Ming-chi, said Taiwan faced a "severe situation" in the Taiwan Strait, adding that China continues investing in military capacity despite a declining economy. Beijing has said it "resolutely opposes" US arms sales to Taiwan and has not renounced the use of force to bring the island under its control. In June, China said Taiwan pursuing independence "by relying on the United States or through military means is a dead end." No further US-China arms discussions have been confirmed publicly beyond the ambassador's account.