US defence strategy omission raises alarm in Taiwan over Trump’s intentions

Taiwan’s absence from the United States’ newly released 2026 National Defence Strategy has fuelled fresh debate on the island over whether Washington is deliberately sidestepping the island as it prioritises bigger interests with Beijing.

The omission is in sharp contrast with earlier editions of the Pentagon’s quadrennial flagship strategy, which had explicitly referred to Beijing’s pressure on Taiwan and pledged support for the island’s asymmetric defence.

The 2022 iteration mentioned the island eight times and described mainland China as launching “increasingly provocative rhetoric and coercive actions” that “threatened stability” and raised the “risk of miscalculation” across the Taiwan Strait.

But Taiwan does not appear at all in the version released on January 23, raising concerns among opposition politicians and parts of the policy community that US support may be wavering as Washington seeks to stabilise ties with Beijing.

“This is something Taiwan must worry about,” said Lai Shyh-bao, a legislator from the main opposition party Kuomintang (KMT). “After all, what [US President Donald] Trump cares about most is his planned meeting with [Chinese President] Xi Jinping in April.”

Lai said the new strategy placed greater emphasis on military-to-military communication between Washington and Beijing to avoid direct confrontation, reflecting what he regarded as Trump’s desire for a more “harmonious” relationship between the two.

“Even though we have spent so much buying US arms, there is no mention of Taiwan’s security in this strategy. That shows where Trump’s priorities lie,” he added.

South China Morning Post