“Taiwan should pay for defense”

Taiwan “should pay” the US for defense, thinks Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.

– We are no different from an insurance company. Taiwan gives us nothing, Trump said in an interview with Bloomberg.

The statement creates question marks about how the relationship between the two countries will turn out if Trump is re-elected president this fall.

Although Washington does not diplomatically recognize Taiwan as independent from China, the two countries are cooperation partners and the US is a major arms supplier to Taiwan.