Washington(dpa) - US President Donald Trump has reiterated his intention to speak with Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te, drawing a firm response from Beijing on Thursday amid tensions over possible new US arms sales to Taiwan.
Asked by reporters whether he intended to call Lai before deciding on further weapons sales to the self-governing island, Trump said on Wednesday: "I will speak to him. I speak to everybody."
"We have that situation very well in hand," Trump added. "We had a great meeting with [Chinese] President Xi [Jinping]. It was amazing, actually. Many of you were there. We'll work on that, the Taiwan problem."
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun issued an anticipated strong rebuke, stating that Beijing firmly rejects any official contacts between the US and Taiwan, as well as US arms sales to the island.
Taiwanese Defence Minister Wellington Koo, by contrast, said he was "cautiously optimistic" regarding the possible arms procurement. Washington has repeatedly stressed that its Taiwan policy remained unchanged, he noted.
No known contact since 1979
A direct conversation between a sitting US president and a Taiwanese leader would mark a break with decades of diplomatic practice.
Washington switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing in 1979 and there have since been no publicly known phone calls between serving leaders of the United States and Taiwan.
The US has nevertheless maintained unofficial ties with Taiwan and supported the island's defence capabilities, primarily through arms sales. The remarks come amid tensions over a possible new US arms package for Taiwan reportedly worth up to $14 billion.
China claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory and strongly opposes official contacts between Taipei and foreign governments.
During Trump's visit to Beijing last week, Xi stressed that the handling of Taiwan would be crucial for stability in US-China relations. Trump later said on his flight back from Beijing that he wanted to speak with Lai.
Responding to reports that Trump could engage directly with Taiwan's leadership, Lai said he would stress that peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait were essential for regional security and prosperity, while accusing China of being the main source of instability because of its ongoing military exercises.
