Trump Set for Washington Summit With Xi as $14B Taiwan Arms Package Remains Pending

With Chinese President Xi Jinping's three-day Washington state visit set to open September 23, 2026 and formal talks and a state dinner scheduled for September 24, US and Taiwanese officials braced for a summit one analyst dubbed 'the summit of the three Ts: Taiwan, technology and trade.' The $14 billion US arms package for Taiwan — paused since Trump and Xi's May 2026 Beijing meeting — remained unresolved heading into the visit; Trump had previously described Taiwan arms sales as a 'very good negotiating chip' with China, while Beijing continued to call Taiwan 'the most important issue in China-US relations.' China's rare-earth export-control suspension, also agreed at the Beijing meeting, is separately set to expire November 10. The White House was expected to maintain its longstanding position of strategic ambiguity rather than make new Taiwan commitments during the visit.