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The Narativ

Trump Holds Taiwan's Arms, Taxes Its Chips

Biden paid to move the best chips off an island China claims. Trump called the law "horrible," took 25% on Taiwan-assembled Nvidia chips bound for China and, at last report, held Taiwan's arms.

Zev Shalev's avatar
Zev Shalev
Nov 12, 2026
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Donald Trump had $11 billion in weapons for Taiwan on hold when he met Xi Jinping in Beijing in May. "I will make a determination," he said. The "last thing we need right now is a war that's 9,500 miles away."

Trump said Xi restated China's opposition to Taiwan's independence. "I heard him out," Trump said. "I didn't make a comment."

Jensen Huang resigned as Nvidia's chief executive Thursday. The chips he fought to sell in China are also a Taiwan story.

The H200 chips the Commerce Department cleared for Chinese buyers are assembled in Taiwan, The New York Times reported Nov. 7. They are routed through the United States on the way to China so the government can collect a 25% tariff.

The chips were cleared. The weapons were not. And some of the grant money Joe Biden's law set aside for chip factories ended up as stock.

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