TAIPEI (Taiwan News) -- Just as the new de facto American embassy is slated to open in Taiwan on June 12 and President Donald Trump is set to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on the same day, American officials tell Reuters that U.S. Navy warships could soon be dispatched to the Taiwan Strait.

The appearance of U.S. warships in the Taiwan Strait would be a welcome sign of support of Taiwan by the Trump administration in light of the recent aggressive live fire exercises on the Chinese side of the strait and multiple close flybys around the island by PLA bombers.

Plans were in the works of sending an aircraft carrier through the Taiwan Strait this year, but were shelved for now, according to officials who spoke to Reuters. The transit of a U.S. aircraft carrier through the Taiwan Strait might have been put on hold as trade talks with China heat up and the Trump - Kim summit in Singapore nears.

The last time a U.S. aircraft carrier passed through the Taiwan Strait was during the George W. Bush administration in 2007, and some in the U.S. military believe another "carrier transit is overdue." The USS Kitty Hawk and eight accompanying ships passed through the strait on their way back to Japan after being denied entry in Hong Kong.

Instead of sending an aircraft task force, a lower profile option could be to send smaller warships through the strait, with the last such transit taking place in July of last year.

According to the Reuters report, the Pentagon has not made any comments on when and if such naval operations would take place.

A fourth official told the news service that "they're turning up the heat," in reference to China's provocative military actions meant to intimidate Taiwan. Thus, sending U.S. warships would be a strong signal to China to back down from its brinksmanship, however, it remains to be seen if the Trump administration will approve such an action.

The official also said that the U.S. is looking at shifting away from bundling weapons sales to Taiwan in large packages and instead provide them on a case-by-case basis. Selling weapons on a smaller scale may serve the dual purpose of avoiding Beijing's ire while at the same time being able to steadily supply Taiwan with badly needed weapons to counter China's current military advantage.

Meanwhile, the news service also reports that the U.S. will probably not send top officials to the June 12 dedication of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), the de facto U.S. embassy in Taiwan. The Trump administration is likely concerned about ruffling Beijing's feathers on the very day that he meets with his North Korean counterpart in Singapore.

Instead, the report cited officials as saying that U.S. representatives may attend the official unveiling of the new AIT compound in September.