Perdue

US Ambassador David Perdue says President Trump asked Xi Jinping whether China would be interested in buying American weapons. The remarks come after a Taiwanese minister described the 'severe' military threat posed by Beijing to the self-ruled island, raising questions about US arms policy toward Taiwan and the wider strategic relationship with China.

Donald Trump addressed former Senator David Perdue's comment suggesting Trump had offered arms sales to Chinese President Xi Jinping, saying Perdue 'was probably talking about Taiwan' rather than China. The remarks drew attention amid ongoing scrutiny of Trump's relationship with Xi and US arms policy toward Taipei, with observers debating what the comment implied about future policy toward Taiwan and Beijing.

U.S. Ambassador to China David Perdue said on Fox News that Donald Trump asked Xi Jinping whether China would be interested in purchasing American weapons. The State Department moved quickly to clarify that Washington has no plans to sell arms to Beijing, seeking to walk back the remark.

The U.S. government has stated it has no plans to sell weapons to China, walking back comments attributed to Perdue that had raised questions about American arms policy toward Beijing. The clarification came quickly, underscoring the sensitivity of U.S.-China relations and the close attention any remarks about military cooperation with China receive in Washington and abroad.