REUTERS - U.S. President-elect
Donald Trump questioned whether the United States had to be bound by its
longstanding position that Taiwan is part of "one China" and
brushed
aside Beijing's concerns about his decision to accept a phone call from
Taiwan's president.
"I fully
understand the 'one China policy,' but I don't know why we have to be bound by
a 'one China policy' unless we make a deal with China having to do with other
things, including trade," Trump said on an interview with Fox News Sunday.
The congratulatory
call that Trump accepted from Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen was the first such
contact with Taiwan by a U.S. president-elect or president since President
Jimmy Carter switched diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China in 1979,
acknowledging Taiwan as part of "one China."
Taiwan is one of
China's most sensitive policy issues, and China generally lambastes any form of
official contact by foreign governments with Taiwan's leaders.
In the Fox
interview, Trump criticized China over its policies on issues such as currency,
the South China Sea and North Korea and said it was not up to Beijing to decide
whether he should take a call from Taiwan's leader.
"I don't want
China dictating to me and this was a call put into me," Trump said.
"It was a very nice call. Short. And why should some other nation be able
to say I can't take a call?"
"I think it
actually would've been very disrespectful, to be honest with you, not taking
it," Trump added.
REUTERS
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