Trump's comments on Taiwan arms sales ignite debate

Strategic ambiguity remains official policy, but the president's statements raise diplomatic alarms

Welcome back to What’s Happening in China, your weekly China brief.

At last weekend’s Munich Security Conference, when asked whether the U.S. should send troops to defend Taiwan in the event of a PRC invasion, U.S. congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez clumsily hesitated before reiterating Washington’s longstanding policy [of strategic ambiguity], saying the goal is “to make sure that we never get to that point.” Her answer aligned with U.S. policy, even if the delivery was awkward. For that, she was later mocked by Donald Trump and U.S. Vice-President JD Vance.

A few minutes after insulting Representative Ocasio-Cortez, the president of the United States, who is scheduled to visit China next month, made the shocking statement that he was discussing potential arms sales to Taiwan with Xi Jinping. The remark raised concerns in Taipei and Washington about whether such consultations would conflict with the Six Assurances, the second of which states that the U.S. “has not agreed to consult…