Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi criticized President Donald Trump‘s decision to deny Taiwan President Lai Ching-te permission to visit New York, calling it a dangerous signal that America “can be bullied by Beijing into silence on Taiwan.”
What Happened: “Donald Trump’s decision to deny permission for President Lai to visit New York sends a dangerous signal: that the United States can be bullied by Beijing into silence on Taiwan,” Pelosi stated, citing a Financial Times report. “This is a victory” for Chinese President Xi Jinping.
The Trump administration blocked Lai’s planned August transit through New York en route to Paraguay, Guatemala and Belize after China raised objections with Washington, according to three sources cited by the Financial Times. Lai’s office said on Monday he had no travel plans due to typhoon recovery and ongoing U.S. tariff discussions.
The decision deepens concerns among Taiwan supporters that Trump is softening his China stance while pursuing a summit with Jinping. The Financial Times reported the Commerce Department was told to freeze planned export controls against China during ongoing trade talks.
Why It Matters: Market implications are significant given Taiwan’s semiconductor dominance. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. TSM produces advanced chips for major U.S. tech companies, while recent reports show NVIDIA Corp. NVDA ordered 300,000 additional H20 AI chips from TSM due to strong Chinese demand after export restrictions eased.
TSM shares previously fell over 2% in July 2024 when Trump, as a presidential candidate, said Taiwan should “pay us for defense,” demonstrating market sensitivity to U.S.-Taiwan policy shifts.
China expert Bonnie Glaser from the German Marshall Fund said Trump “wants to avoid irritating Beijing while U.S.-China negotiations are ongoing.” She warned the decision weakens deterrence and emboldens Xi to seek additional Taiwan concessions, according to the FT report.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice-Premier He Lifeng began a third round of trade negotiations in Stockholm on Monday. The administration has also delayed tough China actions after Beijing slowed rare earth exports, leveraging its industry dominance against Washington.
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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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