Donald Trump has refused to say whether the US would defend Taiwan should China launch a feared invasion against the territory. The US President told reporters on Air Force One that he "made no commitment either way" on the issue followingtalks with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinpingearlier in the week.
He said: "On Taiwan, he feels very strongly, I made no commitment either way." Mr Trump later added: "The last thing we need right now is a war that's 9,500 miles away. I think that's the last thing we need. We're doing very well. When pressed by a reporter on whether the US would defend Taiwan "if it came to it", Mr Trump responded, "I don't want to say".
READ MORE:Trump shares huge 2028 deadline as he hails Xi as 'one of world's great leaders'
READ MORE:Chaos in Cuba as communist island plunged into darkness
He went on: "I'm not going to say that. There's only one person that knows that, you know who it is? Me. I'm the only person.
"That question was asked to me today by President Xi, I said I don't talk about those things ... He asked me if I'd defend them, I said I don't talk about that."
This comes amid fears that China could invade the self-governing island, which it sees as its own territory. Just last month, Xi claimed that "Taiwan independence is the primary threat undermining stability across the Taiwan Strait".
He also used his New Year's address to deliver a threat to Taiwan,warning of China's "unstoppable power".
He said in a speech televised by state broadcaster CCTV: "Compatriots on both sides of the Taiwan Strait are bound by blood ties thicker than water, and the historical trend toward national reunification is unstoppable."
China is also believed to bedeveloping a new generation of nuclear weaponsand to have carried out at least one explosive test in recent years, according to US intelligence assessments.
Source: Daily Express :: World Feed
