Taipei: Taiwan should remain alert to possible subtle shifts in Washington's approach toward Taipei, despite the absence of stated changes in the United States' Taiwan policy following the summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, an expert said Friday.

According to Focus Taiwan, at a Taipei forum on the Trump-Xi talks, Ronan Fu, an assistant research fellow at Academia Sinica's Institute of Political Science, emphasized that Taiwan should focus on its long-term strategic value and shared interests with the U.S., rather than solely relying on democratic values, as "Trump is temporary." Fu highlighted the differing priorities reflected in Chinese and U.S. readouts of the summit, noting that Beijing placed Taiwan at the center of its public messaging, while the White House avoided mentioning Taiwan altogether.

Fu pointed out that despite opposition from U.S. media outlets against treating Taiwan as a bargaining chip in U.S.-China negotiations, Beijing could potentially seek symbolic concessions from Trump. These concessions could manifest through softer language or delays in U.S. arms sales to Taiwan. He referenced commentary from Foreign Policy magazine, which warned that even minor rhetorical adjustments on Taiwan could have major strategic implications due to the significant impact of "small words" in U.S.-China diplomacy.

Fu urged Taiwan to closely observe whether its strategic space might be gradually narrowed under what he referred to as "unanswered rhetoric." Meanwhile, Hung Yao-nan, deputy director of Tamkang University's Institute of China Studies, noted that Beijing seemed to be promoting a new framework for "constructive strategic stability" in U.S.-China relations during the summit, while warning Washington against crossing its red lines on Taiwan.

Hung underscored China's utilization of "stability" language to manage, rather than resolve, strategic rivalry, attempting to position Taiwan as central to the overall stability of U.S.-China ties. He stated, "Stability never equals peace, and silence never equals commitment."

Hsu Tsun-tzu, an associate research fellow and director at the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER), added that trade tensions between Washington and Beijing were likely to persist despite temporary signs of easing after the summit. She noted that Trump's second-term China policy focuses not only on reducing trade deficits but also on curbing China's technological competitiveness and global influence.

Kuo Yu-jen, vice president of the Institute for National Policy Research, highlighted the lack of a significant breakthrough at the summit, describing it as "largely expected" given the structural nature of U.S.-China rivalry. He remarked, "The absence of a clear conclusion was itself the conclusion," noting that both Washington and Beijing appeared more focused on preventing tensions from escalating rather than resolving their core disputes.