Beijing delays Pentagon official’s visit over Taiwan arms deal

Beijing is delaying a visit by Under Secretary of Defense Elbridge Colby meant to pave the way for Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s return trip, the Financial Times reported Wednesday.yahoo
The $14 billion arms package for Taiwan, approved by bipartisan congressional leaders in January, remains stalled after Trump called it “a very good negotiating chip” with China.foxnews
The delay fits a pattern of Beijing using diplomatic access as leverage; China previously threatened to cancel Trump’s summit over the same arms deal.whatshappeninginchina

China Delays Pentagon Official’s Beijing Visit Amid Standoff Over $14 Billion Taiwan Arms Deal

Beijing is stalling a planned visit by Elbridge Colby, the Pentagon’s under-secretary of defense for policy, as China pressures President Donald Trump over a $14 billion weapons package for Taiwan, according to a Financial Times report published Wednesday.yahoo

The delay comes just days after Trump’s two-day summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on May 14-15, during which Taiwan emerged as one of the most contentious issues. Reuters was unable to independently confirm the details of the FT report.scmp

Colby’s Planned Trip to Pave Way for Hegseth Visit

The South China Morning Post reported Tuesday that the Pentagon had been planning to send a delegation led by Colby to Beijing “within weeks” to lay the groundwork for a potential visit by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Sources told the outlet the trip was aimed at finalizing arrangements for a Hegseth visit, though no timeline had been offered.scmp

Hegseth accompanied Trump on his state visit to Beijing last week, making him the first American defense chief to visit China in nearly eight years. A follow-up visit by Colby would have continued the momentum from the summit.scmp

Taiwan Arms Sale at the Center of Tensions

The $14 billion arms package — which includes interceptor missiles for Patriot air-defense systems, anti-drone technology, and NASAMS air-defense systems — was approved by bipartisan congressional leaders in January but has remained stalled within the State Department. Trump must formally notify Congress before the sale can proceed.nytimes

Speaking aboard Air Force One after leaving Beijing, Trump said he was holding the sale “in abeyance” and called it “a very good negotiating chip” in dealings with China. The remark drew immediate criticism from foreign policy experts. “No president has ever said that U.S. arms sales to Taiwan are a useful bargaining chip,” Bonnie Glaser, a China expert, told Fox News ↘2.87%.foxnews

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has insisted that U.S. policy toward Taiwan remains unchanged.axios

Broader Pattern of Beijing Leverage

China’s move to delay Colby’s visit fits a pattern of using diplomatic access as leverage over Taiwan-related decisions. In February, Beijing privately warned that moving forward with Taiwan arms sales could jeopardize Trump’s planned China trip. Last July, the U.S. cancelled a meeting between Colby and Taiwan’s defense minister Wellington Koo ahead of trade negotiations with Beijing.whatshappeninginchina

Taiwan’s president has defended the island’s arms purchases, and a bipartisan group of U.S. senators urged Trump before his Beijing trip to move forward with the deal, arguing that Taiwan’s recent passage of a new military spending plan eliminated any remaining justification for postponement.pbs