Trump shrugs off fuss over Taiwan call
BEIJING (AP) — US president-elect Donald Trump is unapologetic about roiling diplomatic waters with his decision to speak on the phone with Taiwan’s leader, a breach of long-standing tradition that risks enmity from China.
The US severed diplomatic ties with the self- governing island in 1979, but has maintained close unofficial relations and a commitment to support its defense.
Trump’s conversation with Taiwanese President Tsai Ingwen drew an irritated, although understated, response from China, as Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Saturday that the contact was “just a small trick by Taiwan” that he believed would not change US policy toward China, according to Hong Kong’s Phoenix TV.“
The one- China policy is the cornerstone of the healthy development of China-US relations and we hope this political foundation will not be interfered with or damaged,” Wang was quoted as saying. Chinese officials said they lodged a complaint with the US and reiterated a commitment to seeking “reunification” with the island, which they consider a renegade province.
After the phone conversation Friday, Trump tweeted that Tsai “CALLED ME.” He also groused about the reaction to the call: “Interesting how the US sells Taiwan billions of dollars of military equipment, but I should not accept a congratulatory call.”
The US shifted diplomatic recognition to China from Taiwan in 1979. But the governments in Washington and Taipei have maintained close unofficial ties and deep economic and defense relations. The US is required by law to provide Taiwan with weapons to maintain its defense. Since 2009, the Obama administration has approved $14 billion in arms sales to Taiwan.
The call was the starkest example yet of how Trump has flouted diplomatic conventions since he won the Nov. 8 election. He has apparently undertaken calls with foreign leaders without guidance customarily given by the State Department, which oversees US diplomacy.
“President-elect Trump is just shooting from the hip, trying to take phone calls of congratulatory messages from leaders around the world without consideration for the implications,” said Bonnie Glaser, senior adviser for Asia at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.
Over the decades, the status of Taiwan has been one of the most sensitive issues in US-China relations. China regards Taiwan as part of its territory to be retaken by force, if necessary, if it seeks independence.
It would regard any recognition of a Taiwanese leader as a head of state as unacceptable.
Taiwanese newspapers ran banner headlines yesterdayabout the call, and two noted on their front pages that Trump referred to Tsai as “the president of Taiwan,” a formulation that would be a huge shift in American policy and infuriate China.
But Douglas Paal, a former director of the American Institute in Taiwan, which unofficially represents US interests in Taipei, said it was too soon to judge whether Trump was going to lead that shift, or if the incident was just a “complicated accident.”
“Beijing will watch closely to see which it is,” said Paal, now vice president for studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. “But until someone fromTrump Tower explains further, it is unknowable.”