Xi Jinping paid a state visit to the US from September 23 to 25, 2026; US President Donald Trump personally received him at the airport and later accorded him a grand welcome in Washington. This marked the first visit to the US by a Chinese president in 11 years. Typically, US presidents do not receive foreign guests at the airport; prior to Trump, the last instance was in 1962, when Kennedy received the British Prime Minister at the airport. This illustrates just how eager Trump was to appease the Chinese president. Although the visit did not yield any major outcomes, both leaders agreed to extend their 2025 trade agreement by two months, reduce trade tariffs by $30 billion, and continue discussions on AI.
This was the third meeting between the two leaders within a year. They had previously met in person in Busan, South Korea, in October 2025, and during Trump’s visit to China in May 2026. Furthermore, they have agreed to meet again soon at the APEC summit in China in November 2026 and the G-20 summit in Miami, USA, in December 2026.
While these meetings may not have an immediate strategic impact, US allies in the Indo-Pacific region are certainly concerned—particularly due to Trump’s eagerness to bring China into the fold and his policy unpredictability. Key among these nations are Japan, South Korea, Australia, India, and Taiwan. The reason for this is that these countries had become US allies, in one way or another, due to America’s policy of containing China. America’s strategy to counterbalance China was initiated in 2011 under the ‘Pivot to Asia’ policy. Under this policy, the US not only increased its naval deployment in the Indo-Pacific region but also collaborated with nations in the area to operationalize a strategy of encircling China through groupings like the Quad and AUKUS. Furthermore, the US has extended security guarantees to its traditional allies in the region, such as Japan, South Korea, and Australia.
How Taiwan is Affected?
Thanks to the aforementioned US efforts, Taiwan was secure against a takeover by China. However, Taiwan’s security is now the most affected aspect of Trump’s shifting stance towards China. China considers Taiwan an integral part of its territory and is determined to reclaim it—peacefully if possible, or through military means if necessary. China has repeatedly warned the US to tread carefully regarding the Taiwan issue.
Officially, the US also recognizes Taiwan as part of China; this is known as the “One China” policy. To define its relationship with Taiwan in this context, the US enacted the Taiwan Relations Act in 1979. While acknowledging Taiwan as part of China, the Act commits the US to defending Taiwan against Chinese military intervention. Consequently, the US has bolstered Taiwan’s security by maintaining a military presence in the region and supplying it with modern weaponry. This US strategy had convinced China that any military action against Taiwan would inevitably trigger a US military intervention.
While Trump might still intervene militarily to defend Taiwan in the future, his changing attitude towards China could lead Beijing to believe—psychologically—that the US might no longer intervene militarily in the Taiwan issue. This very perception by China poses the greatest threat to Taiwan. It is widely understood that Taiwan cannot defend itself against China’s military forces on its own. There are also concrete grounds for this new Chinese perspective; following his meetings with Xi Jinping, Trump halted a $14 billion arms shipment to Taiwan. A recent instance of the weakening of US security guarantees has also emerged in the case of Saudi Arabia. The United States has provided security to Saudi Arabia since World War II; however, it refused to offer military protection against the Houthi attack in September 2026. These events are likely to embolden China regarding potential military action against Taiwan.
In spite of tariff and technology disputes with the US, China may be further mused with recent strategic developments as a consequence of Trump’s policies in last one year: undermining QUAD mechanism (Once China referred it to Asian NATO), sidelining AUKUS grouping, renaming Indo-Pacific Command as Asia Pacific Command, imposing unilateral tariffs against his old partners like India and South Korea and others, developing new ties with China’s all weather friend Pakistan. These developments create a favourable strategic environment for China in the region.
In this altered climate, China may—consistent with its established strategy—ramp up military activities in the Taiwan Strait in the near future to gauge the US stance. Should Trump show leniency or adopt a policy of appeasement toward China in such a scenario, it would become difficult to prevent Chinese military action against Taiwan down the line. While Trump is assessing the trade benefits of his meetings with the Chinese President, he appears oblivious to their strategic and psychological implications. According to Constructivist theory, psychological factors play a pivotal role in international relations.
Image courtesy: Anewz
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