Trump offered to sell arms to Xi: Ambassador

WASHINGTON, DC

U.S. President Donald Trump (R) and President of China Xi Jinping (L) arrive for a tour of the National Archives Museum on September 25, 2026 in Washington, DC. (AFP Photo)

U.S. President Donald Trump offered to sell arms to his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, in response to concern over weapons sales to Taiwan, the U.S. ambassador to China said in a Fox News interview.

U.S. arms sales to the self-ruled island, which China claims is part of its territory and has threatened to seize by force, have long been a thorny issue between Washington and Beijing.

The United States is required by law to supply Taiwan, which has a democratically elected president and legislature, with weapons for its defense.

U.S. Ambassador to China David Perdue said the issue was raised again when Xi visited the United States last week.

“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,” Perdue said in the interview that aired on Sept. 27.

“There are continuing conversations about other sales, [Trump] and President Xi talk about that every time they get together,” Perdue said, adding that the U.S. position has not changed.

White House officials said that the U.S. had no plans to sell arms to China, according to the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal.

The U.S. State Department said in a statement to the New York Times that “U.S. law prohibits arms sales to China and there is no offer or plan to sell arms to China.”

China warned Taiwan in June that seeking independence “by relying on the United States or through military means is a dead end.”

Washington approved a $11.1 billion arms sale to Taiwan in December, but paused a $14 billion weapons purchase by Taiwan in May, with Trump calling it a “very good negotiating chip” in dealings with China, raising fears that Taiwan’s security could be traded away.