Wong MNC Center Executive Director queried for article on May 2026 Donald Trump-Xi Jinping Summit

In mid-May, the Asian Sentinel interviewed Jean-Marc F. Blanchard, Founding Executive Director of the Mr. & Mrs. S.H. Wong Center for the Study of Multinational Corporations (“Wong MNC Center”), for a story about the recently concluded summit in Beijing between United States (U.S.) President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.  Toh Han Shih’s article concentrated on the two leaders’ discussions about Iran and Taiwan and the ceremonial trapping of the American and Chinese leaders’ get-together.  Regarding Taiwan, Trump criticized the island’s semiconductor ecosystem, going so far as to accuse Taiwan of “‘stealing our chip industry.’”  Dr. Blanchard observed that President Trump’s negative attitude towards Taiwan’s chip industry was not surprising.  After all, Trump has been striving for some time, even wielding increased tariffs, to shift chip manufacturing from Taiwan to the U.S. and force Taiwanese companies to build up the U.S. semiconductor industry.  Dr. Blanchard stressed that what was surprising was Trump deriding Taiwan’s chip industry in Xi’s presence, adding that his remark reflected diluted U.S. interest in Taiwan and suggested that Washington had more interest in squeezing the island rather than supporting it.

The article by Toh Han Shih, dated May 18, 2026, is entitled “In Beijing summit, Trump got what he wanted on Iran, and Xi got what he wanted on Taiwan.”  It is accessible at https://www.asiasentinel.com/p/beijing-summit-donald-trump-xi-jinping.  Copyright remains with the original holder.