President Trump reportedly put a hold on a roughly $400 million military aid package for Taiwan this summer as he works on trade talks and even a possible summit with China. The pause, first reported by The Washington Post, has raised alarm in Taipei and on Capitol Hill as leaders try to read what it means for U.S. support.

A White House official told the Post the decision wasn’t set in stone, but the move fits a broader pattern: the administration appears to prefer selling weapons to Taiwan rather than giving them away as free aid. That approach and the idea that Taipei should pay for more of its own defenses is part of why some of the proposed help didn’t get the green light.

This isn’t the first time the U.S. has stepped up Taiwan’s defenses: under President Biden, Washington approved more than $2 billion in military packages for the island. But the change in tone has made people in Taiwan nervous about how steady U.S. support will be going forward.

Behind the scenes, U.S. and Taiwanese defense officials have still been talking. Senior representatives met in Alaska in August to discuss potential arms sales and other defense cooperation conversations that reportedly covered things like drones, missiles and coastal sensors. Those kinds of systems were part of the plans discussed in recent months.

On the diplomatic front, Trump and China’s Xi Jinping have been in touch as Washington tries to smooth trade issues and even a deal over TikTok. A White House push to secure a better relationship with Beijing appears to be shaping decisions on security assistance too and that trade-off is exactly what’s making Taipei jittery.

U.S. lawmakers have been trying to reassure Taiwan. Republican Senator Roger Wicker, chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, visited Taipei and stressed the U.S. commitment to Taiwan’s freedom and security a reminder that, even amid policy shifts, many in Washington are still pushing for strong defense ties.

Bottom line: the $400 million pause is a sign of shifting tactics sales over free aid and diplomacy with Beijing factoring into defense decisions. Taiwan’s leaders and U.S. lawmakers will be watching closely as talks continue, because small changes now could matter a lot down the road.