Overview

• Lai Ching-te told The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show he would urge President Trump to watch Xi Jinping’s moves closely.
• He said Xi is running larger drills in the Taiwan Strait and building up forces in the East and South China Seas.
• He warned that annexation would strengthen Beijing’s hand against Washington and erode the rules-based order, posing risks to U.S. homeland interests.
• Reuters reports no new U.S. arms sales to Taiwan have been announced since Trump took office, and Trump could meet Xi in South Korea later this month.
• Lai highlighted Taiwan’s plan to lift defense spending to 5% of GDP by 2030 to reinforce deterrence.