By bno - Taipei Bureau The United States has reiterated its opposition to any forced change to the status quo in the Taiwan Strait, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio stressing that Washington does not seek conflict while standing by its long-standing policies on Taiwan a recent report carried by the island nation’s Central News Agency (CNA)

During his first official Cabinet meeting of his second term on Wednesday, US President Donald Trump refused to comment when asked by a reporter's question about whether “the US would allow China to take control of Taiwan by force,

According to reports, the Donald Trump administration has released $5.3 billion in previously frozen foreign aid, including $870 million in security-related exemptions for programs in Taiwan.

Taiwanese officials, facing a more transactional U.S. relationship, have traveled to Washington to float energy deals and defend the island’s semiconductors.

The State Department removed previous wording on its website about not supporting Taiwan independence, which it said was part of a routine update.

Taiwan has condemned China’s military exercises after Beijing designated an area to conduct shooting drills off the self-governed island’s southwest coast.

The US President was once seen as a strong supporter of Taiwan. Now he is accusing it of stealing from the US.