US President Donald Trump on 29 September flatly denied that he had raised the prospect of selling American military equipment to China during his recent meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, pushing back at the White House against a claim attributed to his own ambassador. The denial came in response to a reporter's question citing remarks reportedly made by US Ambassador to China David Perdue on Fox News Sunday.

How the Exchange Unfolded

When the reporter asked whether Trump had suggested such a sale to Xi, Trump responded with apparent surprise: 'To China?' After the reporter confirmed the question, Trump replied, 'You mean to Taiwan?' — suggesting he believed the ambassador's remarks may have been misattributed to the wrong country.

After the reporter reiterated that Perdue had specifically referred to China, Trump said: 'I never heard of that one. I'm going to have to ask him.' He then briefly entertained the notion before drawing a clear line: 'no, they'd probably like to buy it because we do make better equipment than that, so maybe it's a good idea, but we didn't discuss it.'

Trump subsequently suggested the ambassador had likely been referring to Taiwan, not China. He announced no proposed sale to either country and gave no indication that arms sales had featured on the agenda with Xi.

Trump's Assessment of the Xi Meeting

The exchange occurred in the aftermath of a state visit that Trump himself described in glowing terms at the same White House event. Responding to a separate question about steel production, Trump said he had held 'a great meeting with President Xi', rating it 'a 12' on a scale of zero to ten and describing it as respectful. That positive characterisation contained no reference to discussions on military equipment.

The Steel and Defence Manufacturing Context

Trump used the White House event to announce a proposed steel investment in Iowa by a business associated with the Ruia family. He argued that the United States should produce the materials required for its own defence — citing aircraft and tanks as examples — and questioned whether Washington could rely on China for steel to build tanks. His remarks paired a call for greater American industrial self-reliance with an upbeat account of his diplomatic engagement with Beijing.

Notably, neither strand of those remarks established that military sales to China were under active consideration. The subject arose solely because the reporter raised Perdue's reported television remarks; Trump's response left the ambassador's exact words unresolved while stating plainly that a sale to China had not been discussed with Xi.

What Was and Was Not Said

Later in the event, during an exchange about Canadian trade, Trump said the United States got along with China and made deals with other countries. He did not return to the subject of military equipment or offer a further account of his conversation with Xi. Ambassador Perdue's precise remarks on Fox News Sunday remained unaddressed and unresolved by the end of the briefing, leaving open questions about what, if anything, the envoy had actually proposed or floated publicly.

The episode underscores the sensitivity surrounding US arms policy in the context of China-Taiwan relations, where any ambiguity — even a reporter's question — can generate significant diplomatic ripples.