Bernie Sanders Asks: If China Is Our 'So-Called Enemy,' Why Is Trump Offering To Sell Them Weapons?

Key Points

Sen. Bernie Sanders questioned President Donald Trump's China policy after U.S. Ambassador to China David Perdue said Trump asked Xi Jinping whether Beijing wanted to buy American weapons.
Sanders pointed to Trump's calls for $1.5 trillion in Pentagon spending and no AI guardrails, both framed as ways to 'beat' China, and asked why the U.S. would then offer to sell China weapons.
The Trump administration clarified it has no plans to sell weapons to China, saying such sales are prohibited by law and no offer was made.
Trump and Xi recently agreed to more favorable tariff treatment for $30 billion of goods in each direction and set up a bilateral dialogue on advanced AI technology.
Trump also pressed Xi to end support for Iran, with Perdue saying Beijing assured Washington it would not continue assisting Tehran.

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Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) questioned President Donald Trump's China policy after U.S. Ambassador to China David Perdue said Trump asked Chinese President Xi Jinping whether Beijing wanted to buy American weapons.

Sanders Questions Trump's China Policy

On Monday, in a post on X, Sanders raised questions about Trump's approach to China after sharing a Bloomberg post reporting Perdue's remarks.

"Trump says we need to spend $1.5 trillion on the Pentagon because we need to 'beat' China," he said.

He then pointed to Trump's position on AI, writing, "Trump says we can't have any guardrails on AI because we need to 'beat' China."

Sanders contrasted those positions with Trump's offer to sell American weapons to China.

"If China is our so-called enemy, then why is Trump offering to sell them American weapons?" he said.

US Denied China Weapons Offer

On Sunday, the Trump administration clarified that it had no plans to sell weapons to China after Ambassador Perdue said Trump had asked Xi whether Beijing was interested in buying U.S. arms.

Officials said such sales were prohibited by law and no offer had been made.

Perdue said Trump had defended a pending U.S. weapons sale to Taiwan during talks with Xi and jokingly asked whether China wanted to buy American weapons.

Meanwhile, Taiwan urged Washington to expedite a delayed weapons package to strengthen its defense against potential Chinese aggression.

Trump Pressured Xi Over Trade, AI and Iran

Last week, Trump and Xi agreed to more favorable tariff treatment for $30 billion of goods in each direction and established a bilateral dialogue on advanced AI technology.

Xi called for AI to remain "under human control," while Trump favored Department of Justice oversight over broad AI regulations.

Trump also pressed Xi to end direct or indirect support for Iran.

Perdue said Beijing assured Washington it would not continue assisting Tehran, while an Iranian official said China had assured Tehran that its economic, political and military ties with Iran would remain intact.

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by MarketDash editors.