Sen. Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) questioned President Donald Trump’s China policy after U.S. Ambassador David Perdue said Trump had asked Chinese President Xi Jinping whether Beijing wanted to buy American weapons. Sanders contrasted the reported exchange with Trump’s broader arguments that the U.S. must compete aggressively with China in military spending and artificial intelligence. “If China is our so-called enemy, then why is Trump offering to sell them American weapons?” Sanders wrote on X, arguing that the positions appeared contradictory. Perdue said Trump raised the question while discussing U.S. weapons sales to Taiwan, framing American arms exports as something Washington does with countries around the world. The administration later clarified that there are no plans to sell weapons to China. The State Department said U.S. law prohibits such sales, while Trump disputed Perdue’s account and suggested the ambassador may have been referring to Taiwan. Taiwan remains one of the central issues in U.S.-China relations. Washington continues discussions with Taipei over weapons deliveries, while Beijing strongly opposes U.S. military support for the island. The exchange comes as Trump and Xi seek to stabilize other parts of the relationship, including trade and AI, while continuing to compete over technology, security and influence. Sanders’ criticism highlights the broader tension in Washington’s China strategy: treating Beijing as a major strategic competitor while still pursuing diplomacy, trade negotiations and selective areas of cooperation.