A number of Republican politicians lauded the telephone call between President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and US president-elect Donald Trump as an important development in Taiwan-US relations.
The conversation on Friday was the first publicly reported call between a Taiwanese leader and a US president or president-elect since 1979, when Washington switched recognition from Taipei to Beijing.
US House of Representatives Foreign Affairs subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific chairman Matt Salmon called the conversation “historic” and said a strong statement was made through the two leaders speaking.
“I commend Trump for reaching out to the democratically elected president of Taiwan, Tsai Ing-wen,” Salmon said in a statement. “America has always been a champion of democratic values and individual freedoms and I applaud the president-elect for making a strong statement in support of those values around the world.”
House Representative Ben Cardin said that Trump’s move demonstrated his promise toward the only democratic government body in ethnically Chinese-controlled territory, adding that US policy toward Taiwan is guided by the Taiwan Relations Act, according to which both nations maintain strong ties and protect the nation’s unique democracy.
Speaking to US media, House Republican Policy Committee Chairman Luke Messer said Trump’s action was bold.
Messer, who has visited Taiwan twice in recent years, said that anyone interested in Taiwan would know it is a democratic republic, calling Taiwan a “great trading partner of the US” and a country that respects freedom and the law.
“Plaudits to President-elect Trump for his historic phone call to Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen. Strong message to China. New day in Asia,” Republican Representative Pete King said on Twitter.
Separately, former American Institute in Taiwan chairman Richard Bush told CNN that the phone call was a major development, adding that Trump has not technically broken the non-formal relationship between Taipei and Washington, as he has not yet formally entered the White House.
Michael Pillsbury, who was a consultant to Trump on China affairs during the presidential election, said the world was overreacting, adding that the phone call between Tsai and Trump is like any other call that Trump made or received following his election win.
Pillsbury said the call should not be seen as a breach of convention, adding that while the US is likely to retain strong ties with Taiwan, it would not distance itself from China.
Pillsbury said that improving cross-strait ties in recent years mean that the US can maintain close ties with both nations, adding that the “zero-sum” mindset was obsolete.
Additional reporting by Chang Mao-sen and CNA
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