Taiwan KMT's Cheng heads to US, open to Trump meeting
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- Cheng Li-wun, leader of Taiwan's main opposition Kuomintang (KMT) party, departed Monday for a two-week US visit, two months after meeting Chinese President Xi Jinping in China, where she spoke of the need to "promote reconciliation across the Strait and create regional prosperity and peace."
- Cheng is expected to face tough questions over her role in blocking a nearly $40 billion (€34 billion) Taiwanese government plan to purchase weapons, including US arms — significant because the US is Taiwan's primary military supporter.
- Cheng told a press conference she is "of course very willing" to meet US President Donald Trump, saying she is prepared to meet anyone "conducive to peace" and calling Trump "the most critical decision-maker and leader."
- Cheng's itinerary includes San Francisco, Boston, New York, Washington, and Los Angeles, with planned meetings with US lawmakers, government officials, think tanks, and supporters.
- Ahead of the trip, Cheng said she hoped her party could play a key role in regional peace efforts and "gain deeper trust from the US."
Why it matters: The KMT leader arrives in Washington having just courted Xi in Beijing while her party helped torpedo a $40 billion arms package Taipei was preparing to buy from the US — the exact audience now hosting her. The trip will test whether Taiwan's opposition can maintain bipartisan American support for the island's defense while simultaneously pitching itself as a bridge to China.
