Trump demurs on providing arms to Taiwan but asserts "nothing has changed" on US posture

• US President Donald Trump says he has not yet approved a proposed $14 billion arms package for Taiwan.
• Trump insists US policy toward Taiwan remains unchanged despite signaling reluctance over military involvement.

US President Donald Trump said “we will see what happens” when asked if he would approve an arms package to Taiwan, adding that he was not looking “to travel 9,500 miles to fight a war.”

However, he also said “nothing has changed” about the United States’ posture toward Taiwan after this week’s summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

“I will say this: I’m not looking for somebody to go independent, and we’re supposed to travel 9,500 miles to fight a war. I’m not looking for that. I want them to cool down. I want China to cool down,” Trump told Bret Baier in a Fox News interview set to air Friday evening.

On the arms package, Trump said in the interview, taped earlier this week: “I have not approved it yet. We will see what happens.”

On Air Force One earlier, Trump said he discussed the potential $14 billion arms sale to Taiwan with Xi in “great detail,” similarly adding that fighting a war 9,500 miles away is not in the best interest of the United States.

Under the longstanding “One China” policy, the US acknowledges China’s position that Taiwan is part of China but has never officially recognized the Communist Party’s claim to the self-governing island.

Washington maintains robust unofficial relations with Taiwan and has sold billions of dollars in advanced weapons to the island, with bipartisan approval, but has remained intentionally ambiguous on whether it would intervene militarily in the event of a Chinese attack.