U.S. and Taiwan have not yet made concrete plans for a call between Trump and President Lai Ching-te, despite Trump's repeated statements he would speak with her about the island's defenses.

Trump said on Wednesday he would speak with Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te, reiterating the claim after first mentioning it following a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping last week.

A call between the two presidents would be unprecedented. U.S. and Taiwanese presidents have not spoken directly since Washington shifted diplomatic recognition to Beijing from Taipei in 1979.

Such a call risks straining Washington's ties with Beijing, which views democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory.