Trump asks Xi if China wants US weapons, US ambassador says

In a moment that could upend a decade‑long stance on U.S. Arms sales to China, President Donald Trump reportedly asked Chinese President Xi Jinping if Beijing was interested in buying American weapons during a state visit last week. The comment, revealed by U.S. Ambassador to China David Perdue on Fox News Sunday, follows a stalled $14 billion Taiwan arms package.

Perdue’s remark surfaced in the midst of a broader debate over the U.S. Commitment to Taiwan’s defence. The island, governed separately from the mainland, has been waiting for months for the U.S. To approve a new arms package worth roughly $14 billion—a figure that had been put on hold after Trump’s May 2026 summit with Xi in Beijing, where he described the sale as a “very good negotiating chip.”

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Donald Trump Asked Xi If China Wanted To Buy US Weapons, Says American Ambassador

During the September 23‑25, 2026 visit, Perdue told Fox News that 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.” The comment came while Perdue was answering questions about U.S. Policy on Taiwan, a topic that has drawn pressure from both Republican and Democratic lawmakers who view the sale as essential to countering a growing Chinese threat.

"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."

David Perdue, U.S. Ambassador to China, via Fox News

Perdue did not disclose when the exchange took place or whether Xi responded. He also framed the offer as a routine reminder that the U.S. Sells arms globally, saying that “he actually asked President Xi, would he like to buy some at one point.”

In the wake of Perdue’s remarks, the White House and the State Department moved quickly to clarify that the U.S. Has no plans to sell arms to China. A State Department spokesperson said, “U.S. Law prohibits arms sales to China, and there is no offer or plan to sell arms to China.” The White House echoed this stance in a statement to The New York Times.

China’s official position remains unchanged. In a readout from the state‑run Xinhua news agency, Xi urged Trump to oppose “Taiwan independence” during their Washington meeting. Beijing has repeatedly said it “resolutely opposes” U.S. Arms sales to the island and has not renounced the use of force to bring it under its control. The Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson, Guo Jiakun, declined to confirm Perdue’s comments when asked on September 28, 2026, stating that China “has always strengthened its national defence capabilities based on its needs and is committed to maintaining world peace and stability.”

Experts have weighed in on the implications of the alleged offer. Zack Cooper, an Asia security expert at the American Enterprise Institute, described the situation as “shocking” that Trump was resisting arms sales to Taiwan while simultaneously offering them to China. Former White House Asia adviser Dennis Wilder suggested that Trump might be “yanking President Xi’s chain” regarding U.S. Weapon superiority, potentially eroding confidence in U.S. Commitments to regional allies.

Meanwhile, Taiwanese officials have highlighted the severity of the threat from China. Deputy Foreign Minister Chen Ming‑chi told reporters in Taipei that “Taiwan faces a severe situation in the Taiwan Strait. Even though China’s economy is declining, it continues investing more resources into building military capacity.” The U.S. Is required under the Taiwan Relations Act to provide Taiwan with sufficient military equipment to defend itself, but Washington has historically maintained a deliberately ambiguous stance on whether it would intervene militarily if China were to attack.

The Business Standard reported that Trump had authorized a record $11.1 billion in arms for Taiwan last December, but the package has remained on hold since the May summit.