WORLD NEWS: After his meeting with Xi Jinping, Trump warns Taiwan against any idea of independence
World News Update:
The following report highlights an important international development currently attracting worldwide attention.
Not sure that the Taiwanese government appreciates this position. Returning from Beijing on Friday, Donald Trump warned Taiwan against any declaration of independence, the day after a particularly strong warning issued by Chinese President Xi Jinping on this sensitive issue of Sino-American relations. The American president, questioned in an extract broadcast by Fox News, said: “I don’t want anyone to declare independence and, you know, we are then supposed to travel 15,000 kilometers to wage war.” He added: “We don’t want anyone to say, ‘let’s proclaim independence because the United States supports us.'” The issue of arms sales to Taiwan Donald Trump also said he had not yet made a decision regarding a possible arms sale to Taiwan, while calling for appeasement between Beijing and Taipei. “I want (Taiwan) to bring down the temperature. I want China to lower the temperature,” he explained. The Taiwanese question dominated the exchanges between the two leaders during this visit intended to display a certain stability between the two leading world powers, without major progress on the subjects of trade or Iran. On Thursday, Xi Jinping warned his American counterpart: “The Taiwan issue is the most important in Sino-American relations. If handled well, relations between the two countries can remain generally stable. If it is poorly treated, the two countries will clash, or even enter into conflict.”Taiwan, a Chinese province for BeijingChina considers Taiwan as a province that it wishes to reunify with the rest of its territory since the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949. Beijing claims to favor a peaceful solution while maintaining the possibility of a use of force.All our articles on Donald TrumpFor Jacob Stokes, expert at the Center for a New American Security, this meeting was mainly aimed at preserving dialogue between Washington and Beijing. Bonnie Glaser, of the German Marshall Fund, believes that China will seek to convince Donald Trump not to authorize new arms sales to Taiwan before Xi Jinping’s announced visit to Washington in the fall.
International Perspective:
Officials and international observers are expected to continue monitoring the story closely over the coming days.
Global audiences continue following the story closely as regional responses begin to emerge.
More details may emerge as official sources continue releasing new information.
Source: This article was originally published by 20Minutes – Actu Monde and adapted for our international English-speaking audience.
Read the original article here.