BEIJING – Chinese President Xi Jinping is renewing a push for the United States to change a decades-old phrase describing its stance on Taiwan independence, a concession that would be a major diplomatic win for Beijing.

China has asked the Trump administration to officially declare that it “opposes” Taiwan independence, according to a person familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified discussing private information.

The suggested wording is stronger than the Biden administration’s previous statement that US officials

“do not support”

the self-ruled island seeking formal independence, and would add to China’s campaign to isolate Taiwan on the world stage. The Wall Street Journal first reported the request.

The Trump administration has not made a decision regarding the demand, and it is one in a long list of asks from the Chinese side under consideration, according to a separate person familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified as the information is private.

A State Department fact sheet on US ties with Taiwan is currently unavailable on its website.

Language defining the US relationship with Taiwan has long been a sensitive subject.

In February, after the State Department abruptly removed from its website a phrase saying the US does “not support Taiwan independence”, Beijing swiftly urged Washington to “correct its wrongdoings”. Prior to that, the Biden administration removed the phrase in May 2022 but reinstated it after Chinese officials protested.

China’s Foreign Ministry did not respond to a request for comment.

Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Hsiao Kuang-wei said Taipei “continues to closely monitor Beijing’s manipulative narratives, while maintaining smooth and close communication with the US and other partner countries”.

Any change in wording will fan concerns that Washington’s position on the self-ruled democracy, which Beijing considers a part of its territory, is becoming a trade war bargaining chip.

In an abrupt policy reversal, Mr Trump already put on the negotiating table some tech curbs imposed on China over national security concerns.

“The significance is less about an imminent US policy change and more about Beijing testing Washington’s resolve on wording it sees as central to its position,” said Mr Craig Singleton, senior director of the China program at the Washington-based Foundation for Defence of Democracies.

China repeatedly raised this rhetorical shift with the Biden administration, which refused to comply.

“The fact it’s being raised again is consistent with Beijing’s incremental strategy: pocket small wins and then push for more,” said Mr Singleton.

‘Strategic ambiguity’

The discussions come as US President Donald Trump and Mr Xi

prepare for an expected meeting

at an upcoming summit in South Korea, where they will continue to hash out the terms of a broader deal.

As those negotiations drag on, Washington still has not signed a trade deal with global chip hub Taiwan, despite at least four rounds of negotiations.

Underscoring the sensitivities, Mr Trump appears to be balancing efforts to maintain cordial ties with Taiwan without disrupting dialogue with Mr Xi.

In July, US officials denied Taiwan President Lai Ching-te permission to transit through New York, after China raised objections with Washington about the visit.

That hesitation unnerved some officials in the US, who fear Mr Trump may concede too much to Beijing, people familiar with the matter said when the trip was canceled.

Since President Richard Nixon broke formal ties with Taipei to establish relations with Beijing in the 1970s, the US has adopted a “one-China policy” that leaves Taiwan’s sovereignty undetermined.

For decades, Washington has adopted “strategic ambiguity” over whether US forces would defend Taiwan against a Chinese attack.

Taiwan is one of the biggest flashpoints in China’s relationship with the US, which is already fraught over issues such as trade, technology transfers and human rights.

Washington is Taipei’s biggest military backer, though Mr Trump has suggested the island should have to pay for protection.

Since Taiwan’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) won power in 2016, the Chinese government has ramped up its global message that the self-ruled democracy is an “inalienable part” of the People’s Republic of China.

Such efforts are paying off, according to the Lowy Institute, which found more governments in developing countries have subscribed to Beijing’s version of that narrative.

Beijing would portray any change as an erosion of US support for Taiwan and the ruling DPP, said Ms Sarah Beran, a former senior National Security Council official in the Biden administration handling China and Taiwan issues.

“Washington should have a high bar for a change like this – demanding a verifiable, measurable reduction in Chinese military activity around the island that would meaningfully shore up cross-strait peace,” added Ms Beran, who is now a partner at Macro Advisory Partners. BLOOMBERG

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