Donald Trump offered to sell American weapons to China, according to David Perdue, the US ambassador to Beijing, who said the president had asked Xi Jinping whether he wanted to buy them.
Mr Perdue made the disclosure during a television interview on Sunday while discussing the Chinese leader’s state visit to Washington last week. He gave no details of Mr Xi’s response.
“President Trump continues to say, ‘Hey, we sell arms to other people around the world,’” Mr Perdue said. “He actually asked President Xi would he like to buy some at one point.”
The White House said the United States had no plans to sell weapons to China. The State Department said US law prohibited arms sales to the country and that there was “no offer or plan to sell arms to China”.
China is regarded by American policymakers and legislators from both parties as the United States’ principal military, economic and diplomatic rival. The two nuclear-armed powers have repeatedly warned of the risk of a conflict in the Asia-Pacific, particularly over Taiwan and disputed territory in the South and East China Seas.
Trump’s Taiwan arms policy under scrutiny
Mr Perdue’s comments came as the Trump administration faces questions over a $14 billion package of defensive weapons for Taiwan that has been withheld. The package was assembled by State Department officials and approved by congressional leaders earlier this year, but has remained stalled.
Since 1979, US law has required Washington to provide Taiwan with arms of a defensive nature. Bipartisan senators urged Mr Trump in May to approve the sales, while four Republican senators led by Mitch McConnell renewed that appeal in a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth last Wednesday.
The senators also called for $300 million in previously approved aid to help Taiwan purchase weapons, along with $1 billion for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative.
Asked about the delayed package, Mr Perdue pointed to $11 billion in arms sales to Taiwan approved by Mr Trump last year. He said the president and Mr Xi discussed possible further sales whenever they met.
China has said that Mr Xi opposes American weapons sales to Taiwan. Mr Trump previously described the delayed package as a “very good negotiating chip” with Beijing, while Mr Rubio said the administration was reviewing the sale in light of US industrial capacity, military requirements and the defence manufacturing base.
Mr Perdue’s remarks also highlighted the sensitivity of discussing Taiwan arms sales with Beijing. Under a 1982 agreement, the United States said it had not agreed to consult China on such sales, although Mr Trump has said the commitments made in the 1980s are a long way in the past.
Ryan Hass, a former US diplomat and White House national security official, said the disclosure would unsettle American partners including the Philippines, Japan and Taiwan. Taiwan’s de facto ambassador to the United States, Alexander Yui, said he remained confident there had been no change in Washington’s position, but added that he hoped the withheld package would be approved soon.
Mr Trump has said he will meet Mr Xi again in China in November and that the Chinese leader will return to the United States in December. Analysts cited in the discussion said approval of further weapons sales to Taiwan before the end of the year appeared unlikely because of concerns about upsetting Mr Xi ahead of those meetings.
