Trump says Xi assured him China will not act on Taiwan while he is in office, claims Beijing is secretly testing nuclear weapons
President Trump said Sunday that Xi Jinping assured him China would not move on Taiwan, but acknowledged intense mutual spying and claimed China is testing nuclear weapons.
November 2, 2025 - 11:59 PM ET • 2 min read
U.S. President Donald Trump stated Sunday that Chinese President Xi Jinping has assured him that Beijing will not attempt to unify Taiwan with the mainland while the Republican leader is in office.
The assurance follows the first face-to-face meeting between the two leaders in six years, which took place Thursday in Busan, South Korea, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit. Trump said that while the long-contentious issue of Taiwan did not arise during the talks (which focused largely on U.S.-China trade tensions) he was certain of Beijing's restraint.
"He has openly said, and his people have openly said at meetings, 'We would never do anything while President Trump is president,' because they know the consequences," Trump said in an interview broadcast Sunday.
The President's comments on Taiwan came just days after he touted a trade truce with China. However, in the same interview, Trump acknowledged the highly competitive and often adversarial nature of the relationship, confirming that both nations are constantly monitoring each other.
"We're always watching them, and they're always watching us," Trump said.
American intelligence agencies have previously accused China of significant espionage activities targeting the U.S., including infiltrating parts of the U.S. power grid and water systems. China has also been accused of stealing American intellectual property and the personal information of U.S. citizens.
Trump noted that the competitive actions are mutual. "We're a threat to them, too. Many of the things that you say, we do to them," he stated, adding that the world is "very competitive, especially when it comes to China and the U.S."
Despite the acknowledged tensions and surveillance, Trump maintained an optimistic view of the overall relationship. "In the meantime, I think we get along very well, and I think we can be bigger, better, and stronger by working with them as opposed to just knocking them out," he said.
Trump also claimed that China is currently testing nuclear weapons without public knowledge.
"China's testing nuclear weapons," Trump said, adding, "You just don't know about it."
Prior to his meeting with President Xi last week, Trump had written on Truth Social that he had instructed the Department of War "to start testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis," suggesting a potential escalation in nuclear posturing between the two global powers.