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Xi Warns Trump Taiwan Mishandling Could Trigger China-U.S. Conflict at Summit

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Chinese leader Xi Jinping warned U.S. President Donald Trump in Beijing on Thursday that mishandling the Taiwan issue could push the two countries into “clashes and even conflicts,” casting a stark shadow over a summit otherwise framed around trade and the war in Iran theguardian +1. The closed-door warning, disclosed by China but omitted from the White House’s account, marked the sharpest public signal in years that Taiwan remains the central flashpoint in U.S.-China relations theguardian +1.

Xi Puts Taiwan at the Center of a Carefully Choreographed Summit

During more than two hours of talks at the Great Hall of the People, Xi called Taiwan “the most important issue in China-U.S. relations” and said that if it was “handled poorly” the relationship could enter “an extremely dangerous situation,” according to China’s official readout and Foreign Ministry posts on social media theguardian +2. Beijing’s statement emphasized that “clashes and even conflicts” were possible if Washington crossed China’s red lines, even as Xi also spoke of keeping ties stable and avoiding a so‑called Thucydides Trap between a rising China and an established United States apnews +1.

The message came as Trump sought economic wins from his first visit to China since 2017, touting that the relationship would be “better than ever before” in public remarks and highlighting progress on trade and cooperation over keeping the Strait of Hormuz open amid the Iran war theguardian +1. Chinese state media gave prominent coverage to Xi’s Taiwan comments, underscoring they were delivered at the very start of the two‑day summit theguardian +1.

Divergent Readouts, Arms Sales Tensions and Regional Reactions

The White House summary of the meeting focused on trade, fentanyl precursors and maritime security, making no mention of the Taiwan exchange that dominated Chinese and international headlines cbsnews +1. Analysts said the split underscored how Washington preferred to spotlight pragmatic cooperation, while Beijing wanted the summit remembered for a clear warning on its “core interest” theguardian +1. The talks came as Washington had already approved roughly $11 billion in arms to Taiwan and was weighing an additional package of about $14 billion, a point Chinese officials had flagged as a major irritant ahead of the visit theguardian +1.

Taiwan’s government responded within hours, saying Chinese military pressure was the “sole risk” to peace in the Taiwan Strait and wider Indo-Pacific, while welcoming continued U.S. support for the island’s self-defense thehill +1. “He’s warning the U.S. side in no uncertain terms not to screw around,” said Joe Mazur, a Beijing-based analyst, describing Xi’s language as unusually blunt even by the standards of recent cross‑strait tensions theguardian.

The Bigger Picture

Xi’s ultimatum on Taiwan, delivered as Trump courted Chinese business and strategic cooperation, highlighted how the island’s fate now shapes every dimension of the world’s most consequential bilateral relationship. With a record pipeline of U.S. arms sales to Taipei, an ongoing Iran conflict straining global supply routes, and both leaders pledging to avoid great‑power war, Thursday’s warning suggested that any perceived shift in U.S. support for Taiwan—or Chinese military activity around the island—could quickly test those assurances theguardian +2.