Taiwan said on Saturday (May 16, 2026) it is an “independent” nation, hours after U.S. President Donald Trump warned the democratic island against declaring formal independence.

Mr. Trump wrapped up a state visit to Beijing on Friday (May 15, 2026) where Chinese President Xi Jinping had pressed him not to support Taiwan, which China claims is part of its territory.

Taiwan depends heavily on U.S. security backing to deter China from carrying out its threat to annex the island by force.

Taiwan “is a sovereign and independent democratic nation, and is not subordinate to the People’s Republic of China”, Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The Ministry also insisted that U.S. arms sales were part of Washington’s security commitment to Taiwan, after Mr. Trump flagged that he was considering the issue.

Taiwan’s statements came after Mr. Trump issued a warning to the island against making a declaration of independence.

“I’m not looking to have somebody go independent. And, you know, we’re supposed to travel 9,500 miles to fight a war. I’m not looking for that,” he told Fox News‘ “Special Report with Bret Baier”.

“I want them to cool down. I want China to cool down,” Mr. Trump said.

“We’re not looking to have wars, and if you kept it the way it is, I think China’s going to be OK with that.”

The United States recognises only Beijing and does not support formal independence by Taiwan, but historically has stopped short of explicitly saying it opposes independence.

Under U.S. law, the United States is required to provide weapons to Taiwan for its defence, but it has been ambiguous on whether U.S. forces would come to the island’s aid.

Mr. Xi had begun the summit with a warning on Taiwan, whose President Lai Ching-te considers the island already independent, making a declaration unnecessary.

The Chinese leader told Mr. Trump that missteps on the sensitive issue could cause “conflict”.

Taiwan’s Presidential Office noted on Saturday (May 16, 2026) the “multiple reaffirmations from the U.S. side, including President Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, that the consistent U.S. policy and position toward Taiwan remain unchanged”.

“Taiwan-U.S. cooperation has always been demonstrated through action,” spokeswoman Karen Kuo said in a statement.

“Taiwan looks forward to continuing to work with the US under the firm commitments of the Taiwan Relations Act.”

U.S. weapon sales

Ahead of the summit, Mr. Trump had said he would speak to Mr. Xi about U.S. arms sales to Taiwan, a departure from Washington’s previous insistence that it would not consult Beijing on the matter.

Taiwan’s Parliament recently approved a $25 billion defence spending bill that will be used for U.S. weapons.

Lawmakers have said the funds will cover nearly $9 billion of the $11.1 billion arms package announced by Washington in December and a second phase of arms sales — not yet approved by the United States — worth more than $15 billion.

Speaking to reporters on Friday (May 15, 2026) en route to Washington, Mr. Trump said on arms sales: “I’ll make a determination over the next fairly short period of time.”

Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry said arms were “not only a U.S. security commitment to Taiwan clearly stipulated in the Taiwan Relations Act, but also a form of joint deterrence against regional threats”.

China has sworn to take the island and has not ruled out using force, ramping up military pressure in recent years.

China called on Friday (May 15, 2026) for a lasting truce in the West Asia and for shipping lanes to be reopened “as soon as possible”, as the strategic Strait of Hormuz has been effectively closed during the war with Iran.

Iran has largely blocked shipping through the vital strait since conflict broke out with the United States and Israel on February 28 and Washington has blockaded Tehran’s ports.

Iran’s grip over the waterway has rattled global markets and given Tehran significant leverage.

U.S. President Donald Trump has discussed Iran during a summit in Beijing with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

In an interview with Fox News after the first day of the summit wrapped, Mr. Trump said Mr. Xi had effectively assured him that China was not preparing to militarily aid Tehran.

“He said he’s not going to give military equipment… he said that strongly,” Mr. Trump told Fox.

“He’d like to see the Hormuz Strait open, and said ‘if I can be of any help whatsoever, I would like to help,’” Mr. Trump added.

When asked if the two presidents had discussed the subject, China’s foreign ministry responded on Friday saying it hoped a lasting ceasefire could be reached “as soon as possible” to restore peace and stability in the West Asia.

“Shipping lanes should be reopened as soon as possible in response to the calls of the international community,” it added.

“There is no point in continuing this conflict which should not have happened in the first place.”

In peacetime, the Hormuz Strait accounts for roughly a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments, along with other key commodities.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said on Thursday (May 14, 2026) that naval forces had allowed a number of Chinese ships to pass through the strategic Strait of Hormuz since the previous night.

U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping held a “good” meeting in Beijing on Thursday (May 14, 2026), the White House said, in a readout that did not include any reference to Taiwan.

“President Trump had a good meeting with President Xi of China. The two sides discussed ways to enhance economic cooperation,” the White House said in a statement.

It made no mention of discussions on self-ruled Taiwan that Mr. Xi earlier said could cause a “conflict” between China and the United States should the issue be mishandled.

Taiwan says nothing surprising so far from Trump-Xi summit

So ‌far there ​is ⁠no surprising message from ‌the summit ‌between ‌the ⁠Chinese ⁠and U.S. leaders ​in Beijing, a ‌spokesperson for Taiwan’s Mainland ‌Affairs Council said.

They added that Taipei is in close ‌touch ​with Washington ⁠on the meeting.

With inputs from AFP, Reuters

U.S. President Donald Trump commenced his highly anticipated three-day visit to China on May 13, amid the ongoing Israel-U.S. war with Iran, and a year after Mr. Trump imposed steep import tariffs on several countries. China was one of the countries on which the U.S. imposed the highest tariffs. 

Mr. Trump’s previous visit to Beijing was in November 2017 during his first term as U.S. President. Interestingly, it was a few months after his 2017 visit that he started a trade war with China by levying high import tariffs on various products to fight the latter’s “unfair trade practices” and address the huge trade imbalance between the two countries. China retaliated with its own tariffs.

President Donald Trump says that Chinese President Xi Jinping has given him assurances that Beijing would take no action toward its long-stated goal of unifying Taiwan with mainland China while the Republican leader is in office.

Mr. Trump said that the long-contentious issue of Taiwan did not come up in his talks with Mr. Xi on Thursday in South Korea that largely focused on U.S.-China trade tensions. But the U.S. leader expressed certainty that China would not take action on Taiwan, while he’s in office.

“He has openly said, and his people have openly said at meetings, ‘We would never do anything while President Trump is president,’ because they know the consequences,” Mr. Trump said in an excerpt of an interview with the CBS’ programme “60 Minutes” that aired on Sunday (November 2, 2025).

U.S. officials have long been concerned about the possibility of China using military force against Taiwan, the self-ruled island democracy claimed by Beijing as part of its territory.

The 1979 Taiwan Relations Act, which has governed U.S. relations with the island, does not require the U.S. to step in militarily if China invades but makes it American policy to ensure Taiwan has the resources to defend itself and to prevent any unilateral change of status by Beijing.

Asked if he would order U.S. forces to defend Taiwan if China attacked, Mr. Trump demurred. The United States, both Republican and Democratic administrations, have maintained a policy of “strategic ambiguity” on Taiwan — trying not to tip their hands on whether the U.S. would come to the island’s aid in such a scenario.

“You’ll find out if it happens, and he understands the answer to that,” Mr. Trump said of Mr. Xi.

The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The White House also did not provide further details about when Mr. Xi or Chinese officials have conveyed to Mr. Trump that military action on Taiwan was off-the-table for the duration of the Republican’s presidency.

The “60 Minutes” interview was taped on Friday at Mr. Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. It marked Mr. Trump’s first appearance on the show since he settled a lawsuit this summer with CBS News over the newsmagazine’s interview with Kamala Harris.

The rest of the interview is scheduled to air later on Sunday.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday (October 30, 2025) said India has been “very good” on the issue of reducing oil imports from Russia, reiterating his claim that Delhi will significantly reduce its energy purchases from Moscow.

Speaking to reporters onboard Air Force One on his way back to Washington following his summit meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Busan, Mr. Trump was asked about Russian oil purchases.

Mr. Trump said Mr. Xi has been “buying oil from Russia for a long time. It takes care of a big part of China. And, you know, I can say India’s been very good on that front. But we didn’t really discuss the oil. We discussed working together to see if we could get that war finished.”

Mr. Trump has been claiming for the past few days that Delhi has assured him that it will significantly reduce its oil imports from Russia.

Last week, Mr. Trump reiterated his claim that India has agreed to “stop” buying oil from Russia and would bring them down to “almost nothing” by the end of the year.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has said that India is a significant importer of oil and gas, and it has been Delhi’s consistent priority to safeguard the interests of the Indian consumer in a volatile energy scenario.

“Our import policies are guided entirely by this objective. Ensuring stable energy prices and secured supplies have been the twin goals of our energy policy. This includes broad-basing our energy sourcing and diversifying as appropriate to meet market conditions.

“Where the U.S. is concerned, we have for many years sought to expand our energy procurement. This has steadily progressed in the last decade. The current Administration has shown interest in deepening energy cooperation with India. Discussions are ongoing,” the MEA had said earlier this month.

A group of Chinese H-6K bombers recently flew near Taiwan to practice “confrontation drills”, Chinese state media reported late on Sunday (October 26, 2025), publicising the action just a few days before the U.S. and Chinese presidents are due to meet in South Korea.

Taiwan, which China views as its own territory, sends its combat aircraft and warships into the skies and waters around the island on a daily basis, though Taipei’s Defence Ministry has not reported any unusual activity lately.

Chinese state television’s military channel’s Weibo account said that recently — it did not give a date — units from the Eastern Theatre Command had conducted combat-oriented training to test their capabilities in areas like air blockades and precision strikes.

“Several J-10 fighters flew in combat formation to a designated target airspace, and multiple H-6K bombers went to the waters and airspace around Taiwan island to carry out simulated confrontation drills,” it added, without providing the location.

China’s Defence Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment, while Taiwan’s Defence Ministry had no immediate comment.

The H-6K is a strategic bomber that can carry nuclear weapons.

The report added that defending national sovereignty and territorial integrity through “concrete actions and safeguarding the peace and happiness of hundreds of millions of people is our solemn commitment”.

It showed a video of bombs being dropped, and in one segment an air force officer says that the “coast of Taiwan can be clearly made out”, though it is not clear from the image whether any land can be seen.

Trump XI meeting

U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are expected to meet on the sidelines of a regional summit in South Korea this week to discuss their ongoing trade dispute.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Sunday (October 26, 2025) that Taiwan should not be concerned about the talks.

Taiwan, whose government rejects Beijing’s sovereignty claims, has over the decades enjoyed strong though unofficial support from the United States, which despite the lack of formal diplomatic ties is bound by law to provide the island with the means to defend itself.

On Saturday (October 25, 2025), a senior Chinese official said China and Taiwan should work to achieve “peaceful reunification”, marking the 80th anniversary of Taiwan being handed over to the Chinese government from Japanese rule at the end of World War Two.

In an interview with two Taiwanese YouTubers broadcast late on Saturday (October 25, 2025), Taiwan President Lai Ching-te said peace had to rely on strength, pointing to his government’s commitment to increased defence spending.

“We have ideals about peace, but cannot have illusions to believe that an agreement on a piece of paper can achieve peace,” he added.

China has rebuffed multiple offers of talks from Mr. Lai, accusing him of being a “separatist”. Mr. Lai has said only Taiwan’s people can decide their future

A trade deal between the United States and China is drawing closer, officials from the world’s two largest economies said on Sunday (October 26, 2025) as they reached an initial consensus for President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping to aim to finalise during their high-stakes meeting.

The Republican President is set to meet with Xi on Thursday (October 30) in South Korea, the final stop of his trip through Asia.

Any agreement would be a relief to international markets even it does not address underlying issues involving manufacturing imbalances and access to state-of-the-art computer chips.

Beijing recently limited exports of rare earth elements that are needed for advanced technologies, and Mr. Trump responded by threatening additional tariffs on Chinese products. The prospect of a widening conflict risked weakening economic growth worldwide.

China’s top trade negotiator, Li Chenggang, told reporters that the two sides had reached a “preliminary consensus,” while Mr. Trump’s treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, said there was “a very successful framework.” Mr. Trump also expressed confidence that an agreement was at hand, saying the Chinese “want to make a deal and we want to make a deal.”

Mr. Trump reiterated that he plans to visit China in the future and suggested that Xi could come to Washington or Mar-a-Lago, Mr. Trump’s private club in Florida.

Mr. Bessent told CBS’ “Face the Nation” that the threat of additional higher tariffs on China was “effectively off the table.” In interviews on several American news shows, he said discussions with China yielded initial agreements to stop the precursor chemicals for fentanyl from coming into the U.S., and that Beijing would make “substantial” purchases of soybean and other agricultural products while putting off export controls on rare earths.

The progress toward a potential agreement came during the annual summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, in Kuala Lumpur, with Mr. Trump seeking to burnish his reputation as an international dealmaker.

Yet his way of pursuing deals has meant serious disruptions at home and abroad. His import taxes have scrambled relationships with trading partners while a U.S. government shutdown has him feuding with Democrats.