Taiwan Should Be Kept Off the Negotiating Table
The article argues that the Trump-Xi summit left the US position on Taiwan shifted toward China, because Trump had already told reporters he was discussing US arms sales to Taiwan with Xi and had called a $14 billion arms package for the island a "negotiating chip." The package, ready for his signature since March, remains unsigned, and after the summit Trump said he and Xi had not talked about Taiwan "too much." Trump has confirmed that he and Xi will meet twice more before the end of the year, at APEC in Shenzhen and the G20 in Miami.
Why it matters: The commentary treats Taiwan as a test of whether US security commitments survive bargaining, which bears directly on the briefing's US-China relations theme.