Trump denies offering to sell arms to China's Xi

US President Donald Trump on Monday denied asking Xi Jinping if he wanted to buy American weapons, countering his own envoy's claim that Trump made the offer to his Chinese counterpart.

US Ambassador to China David Perdue told Fox News on Sunday that Trump made the extraordinary offer to sell arms to the rival superpower.

"I've never heard of that one, I'm going to have to ask him," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office when asked about Purdue's comments.

"They'd probably like to buy it because we do make better equipment than them, so maybe it's a good idea. But we didn't discuss it."

Purdue had said Trump made the offer during Xi's state visit to the White House last week in response to Chinese concerns over US weapons sales to Taiwan.

"President Trump continues to say, 'Hey, we sell arms to other people around the world.' He actually asked President Xi -- would he like to buy some? -- at one point," Perdue said in an interview with Fox News.

"There are continuing conversations about other sales, (Trump) and President Xi talk about that every time they get together," Perdue said, adding that the US position has not changed.

A US official told AFP earlier that "the US government has no plans to sell weapons to China", when asked about Purdue's remarks.

US arms sales to Taiwan, a self-ruled island which China claims is part of its territory and has threatened to seize by force, have long been a thorny issue between Washington and Beijing.

The United States is required by law to supply Taiwan, which has a democratically elected president and legislature, with weapons for its defense.

- 'Negotiating chip' -

The US State Department said in a statement to The New York Times that "US law prohibits arms sales to China and there is no offer or plan to sell arms to China."

The Chinese foreign ministry did not directly answer when asked about the comments on Monday.

But it said China has "always strengthened its national defense capabilities based on its own needs, and remains committed to maintaining world peace and stability."

Trump has maintained a strategically ambiguous stance over Taiwan, refusing to say directly whether the US would come to its aid if China invades, while continuing to approve weapons sales.

Beijing warned Taiwan in June that seeking independence "by relying on the United States or through military means is a dead end."

Washington approved a $11.1 billion arms sale to Taiwan in December, which Perdue said was a sale of "more arms to Taiwan than any other president since 1979."

The US paused a $14 billion weapons purchase by Taiwan in May, with Trump calling it a "very good negotiating chip" in dealings with China, raising fears that Taiwan's security could be traded away.

During his Washington trip, Xi repeated his warning that Trump should show "prudence" over Taiwan, and went further to urge the United States to oppose Taiwan independence explicitly.

Trump has declined to say whether he discussed Taiwan with Xi during the visit, preferring to stress what he says is his good relationship with the Chinese leader as the two countries seek to manage their tensions.

The two leaders have met twice already this year, with Trump having traveled to Beijing in May.

They have confirmed they will meet for a third and fourth time at the APEC summit in Shenzhen, China, in November and the G20 forum at Trump's Doral resort in Miami in December.