A senior US senator has reaffirmed that Washington should not check with Beijing before selling weapons to Taiwan — good news for Taipei, bad news for China's hopes of softening US support after the Trump-Xi meeting.

• Senate Armed Services chair Roger Wicker met Taiwan's envoy to Washington and said the Reagan-era "Six Assurances" — including no consultation with Beijing on arms sales — still hold.
• The message lands right after the Trump-Xi summit, when Taipei was watching for any sign US backing might be traded away.
• The 1979 Taiwan Relations Act remains US law and commits Washington to supply enough defensive weapons for Taiwan to defend itself.
• China's military buildup and pressure on Japan, the Philippines, and Taiwan were cited as the reason the commitments matter now.
• Congress has already funded more training, security help, and arms deals, and wants them carried out on its terms — not renegotiated.

Outlook: Expect Congress to keep pushing arms deliveries to Taiwan regardless of how US-China talks go, and expect Beijing to protest each one.