Taiwan ‘Closely Watching' Ukraine as Trump Pivots, Official Says
Save
Taiwan Vice Premier Cheng Li-chiun vowed to boost the archipelago's defense capabilities including through developing its own military drones, as the Trump administration weakens support for Ukraine casting doubt over Washington's commitment to Taipei.
'Taiwan has been paying very close attention to the developments in Ukraine,' Cheng told Bloomberg TV, in response to a question on whether the government is worried about President Donald Trump's decision to reverse years of US foreign policy to embrace Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hill
11 minutes ago
- The Hill
Trump called Orban to win his support for Ukraine joining EU: Report
President Trump called Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Monday to win his support for Ukraine to join the European Union (EU), a conversation that came after discussions with European leaders who were at the White House, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter. The talk with Orban, one of the staunchest Trump allies in Europe, resulted from the president's Monday deliberations with European leaders who were in Washington, along with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky. The top European officials asked if the president could utilize his sway over the Hungarian prime minister to force the nationalist leader to do away with his opposition to Ukraine's joining the EU, a goal Kyiv has long sought, the outlet reported. Hungary expressed willingness to host the next summit, featuring both Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Trump has backed the idea of a Putin-Zelensky summit, after which a trilateral meeting would take place between the two leaders and the U.S. president. The location and timing for the meeting are unclear. The White House is eyeing a trilateral meeting between Trump, Putin and Zelensky in Budapest, Politico reported on Tuesday, citing a White House official and another person close to the administration. Orban, who has a warm relationship with Putin, has tried to block or delay the EU's attempts to send weapons to Ukraine in the past, along with, at times, objecting to sanctions against the Kremlin. Neither the White House nor Orban's office has commented on the call. Orban said on Tuesday on Facebook that Ukraine's membership in the EU 'does not provide any security guarantees,' therefore, 'linking membership with security guarantees is unnecessary and dangerous.' Trump's call with Orban came the same day as the president's discussion with Putin, which lasted about 40 minutes and took place without European leaders or Zelensky being in the room with the commander-in-chief. The gathering of European officials and Zelensky in Washington on Monday came just days after Trump, along with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff, met with Putin, alongside two other Russian officials, on Friday in Alaska. Rubio now leads the recently formed joint commission that will work on drafting a security guarantees proposal for Ukraine. The commission is made up of U.S., European, Ukrainian and NATO officials. Trump, who has pushed to end the Russia-Ukraine war, the conflict that has raged for about three-and-a-half years, signaled openness to providing air support for Ukraine as part of security guarantees. 'We're willing to help them with things, especially, probably, if you talk about by air because nobody has stuff we have,' the president said Tuesday.
The Hill
40 minutes ago
- The Hill
Air support for Ukraine? Trump floats security guarantee
Trump has said the U.S. will help Europe craft security guarantees for Ukraine to backstop any peace deal reached with Russia, in lieu of Ukraine joining NATO, a red line for Russia. 'When it comes to security, they are willing to put people on the ground,' Trump said in an interview on 'Fox & Friends' Tuesday morning, referring to Europe. 'We're willing to help them with things, especially, probably, if you talk about by air because nobody has stuff we have.' White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday that Trump has tasked his national security team to ' come up with a framework for these security guarantees that can be acceptable to help ensure a lasting peace and end this war.' ' I won't, certainly, rule out anything as far as military options that the president has at his disposal, I'll let him do that,' she said, adding the president has 'definitively' ruled out boots on the ground. NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte on Monday said Trump's willingness to involve the U.S. in security guarantees for Ukraine was a 'breakthrough' in the peace process, though details on America's potential role remain scarce. Trump's floating the possibility of air support could mean American pilots engaged in defensive operations, guarding against Russian missiles, or simply providing support for other aircraft — such as air-to-air refueling or for transportation of military equipment. Defensive operations could risk a confrontation between the U.S. and Russia, a scenario that both Trump and former President Biden before him have been anxious to avoid.
Business Insider
an hour ago
- Business Insider
Stock Market News Review: SPY, QQQ Tumble on Alarming AI Report as Momentum Fades
Both the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) and the Nasdaq 100 ETF (QQQ) finished Tuesday's trading session in negative territory following a report from MIT that cast doubt on the sustainability of AI. Elevate Your Investing Strategy: Take advantage of TipRanks Premium at 50% off! Unlock powerful investing tools, advanced data, and expert analyst insights to help you invest with confidence. The report estimates that U.S. companies have invested between $35 and $40 billion in AI, though the returns have been underwhelming. 'Just 5% of integrated AI pilots are extracting millions in value, while the vast majority remain stuck with no measurable [profit and loss] impact,' said MIT. The report surveyed hundreds of leaders and employees and collected data from 300 public AI announcements. Over the weekend, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said that he believes the AI industry is experiencing a bubble, reported The Verge. 'I do think some investors are likely to lose a lot of money, and I don't want to minimize that, that sucks,' Altman said. 'There will be periods of irrational exuberance.' Meanwhile, the White House announced that President Trump is working to set up a bilateral meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin in an attempt to secure a ceasefire or truce. Trump added that he was open to attending the meeting. Furthermore, Trump has pledged air support for Ukraine as part of a security guarantee package while insisting that U.S. troops would not set foot on Ukrainian territory. Discussions surrounding these guarantees between the U.S., Ukraine, and several other European nations are set to begin in the coming days. Trump's efforts to broker peace between several nations haven't exactly improved his ratings. According to a Reuters/Ipsos poll ended August 18, Trump's approval rating is still at a term-low of 40%, remaining unchanged from late July. 54% of the respondents worried that Trump was too closely aligned with Russia. Trump met with Putin last week in Anchorage, Alaska to try and resolve the Russia-Ukraine war. To end on a positive note, S&P Global affirmed the U.S. long-term credit rating of AA+, citing elevated tariff revenue that is expected to offset the tax breaks and spending measures from The One Big Beautiful Bill. 'Amid the rise in effective tariff rates, we expect meaningful tariff revenue to generally offset weaker fiscal outcomes that might otherwise be associated with the recent fiscal legislation, which contains both cuts and increases in tax and spending,' said S&P.
