Trump says Xi assured him China won’t take action on Taiwan during his presidency

The United States and China are currently competing for control of rare earth minerals, which are essential minerals that support everything from smartphones and electric vehicles to advanced military technology and renewable energy systems. For years, China has held a de facto monopoly, producing 60-70% of the world’s rare earth elements and an even larger percentage of the processing capacity. Following this competition over critical rare earth minerals, China and the United States are now once again at odds; this time, it’s over Taiwan.

This time, United States President Donald Trump stated that China “knows the consequences” if it attacks Taiwan, asserting that Chinese President Xi Jinping understands the situation “very well.”

Trump made the remarks in an interview with CBS following his meeting with Xi. US President Trump said, “You’ll find out if it happens, and he understands the answer to that. This never even came up yesterday as a subject. He never brought it up. People were a little surprised that he never brought it up because he understands it, and he understands it very well,” as reported by news agency ANI.