Its Over, page-22866

...this is transactional Trump talk, his 'blackmailing' (for a lack of a better word) of US allies into paying America for a promise to defend.
...you also have to wonder if the timing of his statement on Taiwan along with his warning to Fed Powell not to cut rates until after the election, are both intended to 'crash' the market (before his Presidency) under Biden's watch. See my post yesterday.

Donald Trump signals he would not defend Taiwan from Chinese invasion

The Telegraph


Donald Trump has signalled the US would not defend Taiwan from a Chinese invasion under his presidency – because the country had grown rich by “stealing” US microchip production.

The Republican 2024 nominee said Taipei “should pay” Washington to support its defence, adding that the island nation was 9500 miles (152 kilometres) away and “doesn’t give us anything”.

His remarks call into question whether US support for Taiwan would continue if he won a second term, as the polls suggest, in November’s presidential election.
Asked whether he would defend the island, which Beijing has vowed to annex, Trump declined to answer explicitly, telling Bloomberg: “I think Taiwan should pay us for defence.

“You know, we’re no different than an insurance company. Taiwan doesn’t give us anything.”

Trump also complained that the island “took all of our [semiconductor] chip business” and was “immensely wealthy”. “I mean, how stupid are we?” he added.

The self-governing island produces around 90 per cent of the world’s advanced semiconductor chips, which power everything from smartphones to AI applications. It is a major supplier to some of America’s biggest companies, including Apple and Nvidia.
Joe Biden has said on several occasions he would come to Taiwan’s aid in the event of an invasion.

Trump described Taiwan as “the apple of President Xi’s eye”. The former president said China had been “very aggressive” since he left office in 2021 and he “wouldn’t feel so secure right now” if he was Taiwan.