US President-elect Donald Trump railed against China on Sunday, only hours after his transition team denied that his call with Taiwan’s president signaled a new US policy toward Pacific power.
Trump’s unusual call with Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen on Friday prompted a diplomatic protest with the United States on Saturday, although Vice President-elect Mike Pence downplayed its significance, saying it was a “courtesy” call, not intended to show a shift in US policy on China.
Trump, who vowed during his campaign he would label China a currency manipulator, continued some of his hard-line rhetoric on Sunday. Showing no signs of a conciliatory approach after the phone call with Tsai, he made his feelings clear on Twitter.
“Did China ask us if it was OK to devalue their currency (making it hard for our companies to compete), heavily tax our products going into their country (the US doesn’t tax them) or to build a massive military complex in the middle of the South China Sea? I don’t think so!” Trump said tweeted.
China, Taiwan, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei claim parts or all of the South China Sea, through which trillions of dollars in trade passes annually.
The diplomatic contretemps was one of several recently for the Republican president-elect, a real estate magnate who has never held public office and has no foreign affairs or military experience. Trump, who takes office on January 20, is still considering whom to name as his secretary of state.
The call with Taipei was the first by a US president-elect or president with a Taiwanese leader since President Jimmy Carter switched diplomatic recognition to China from Taiwan in 1979, acknowledging Taiwan as part of “one China.” China regards Taiwan as a renegade province.
China blamed Taiwan for the call, but also lodged a diplomatic protest with the United States on Saturday, saying the “one China” policy was the bedrock of relations between China and the United States.
Pence called the uproar over the call with “democratically elected” Tsai a “tempest in a teapot.” He blamed the media for the controversy, saying the call was similar in nature to one between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping after the November 8 election.
“I think I would just say to our counterparts in China that this was a moment of courtesy. The president-elect talked to President Xi two weeks ago in the same manner. It was not a discussion about policy,” Pence said on NBC’s Meet the Press.
China’s Foreign Ministry said on Saturday it had lodged “stern representations” with what it called the “relevant US side,” urging caution on the issue.
Pence said he was not aware of any contact between the Trump transition team and the Chinese government since Friday and did not expect Trump’s team to reach out this week to ease tensions with Beijing.
Diplomacy is a different creature from business networking and being the leader of a particular political philosophy is different from being the Head of a Nation representing all its citizens of whatever creed colour or race.
This is called putting words in his mouth.
Fasten your seatbelts? Clean up your basement? Reenforce it concrete and steel? And stock it with as much can food as you can? Mad men taking over!
Another gibberish garbage comment.
The xtian emperor looks quite confident in the picture….Jesus his master may have whispered something in his ears ……..put the first card on the table which is trade….then we will bind one step to the next step….
Trump’s move on the chessboard of "deal making" is an art of itself. One may disagree with his tactics but those who have experienced highly tense negotiations, know the first rule of the game. Which is, to let the parties on the negotiating table know that the negotiations that are about to take place have alternative parties outside the negotiating table to hold an Ace in a hole, so to speak just in case. Trump’s trump card" in the deck is always a tactics of this world class tactician of negtiator. He has just played a small card from his deck to intice China’s attention and interest just to initate the first step toward an highly perceptive, intutive, yet conspicuous move in order to predict and forecast of laying palatable road to the pending negotiations with China. China is the gargantous and the final enterprize with the ultimate world-cup winning game! Trump’s triumph for this most salivating and challenging game has to be prepared in a perfect planning brew of the ultimate kind. China is not going anywhere in the next 5 to 6 weeks and Mr. Trumps is exactly going to many places of uncertain destinations of world politics. He will soon shock the nay sayers with his usual inventive and provoktive announcement about China!
Also remember this USA is a democratic & a xtian country where for 2 quarters his GDP instead of growing 4% has a negative 2%…..his media hordes & the opposition party will take him to task & next election he will lose in congress as people will get wearied soon.So the chinese know these things about democracy & xtians who are big time liars also.
Also think about it the chinese were surrounded by 2 big powers Japan & Russia very capable,& other countries equally big like India,Pakistan,Vietnam also…..in 1950 they had nothing in their pocket & then US was assailing & blackmailing them….they could wade through all their problems……now they will have their strategy also & unlike USA which has democracy & unstable government …..asian countries will be wary making deals with polorized countries also.Today this president will do some deal…after 4 years some other president will change that deal..those Asian countries will lose their respect with their citizen & will lose power…..on other hand it will be more stable with china….off course the chinese will extract their pound of flesh for that stability & order which americans & xtians used to extract the past 70 years.
Politely recieving a call is not the same as all your explosive attempts to intimidate Trump. Why aren’t you freaking out over your own president calling? Trump is not Obama. When you try to intimidate a real leader they tend to respond letting you know how out of line you are and have been. Your bullying tactics and swift condemnation like you have a right to dictate to a US President with whom he can speak is doing a tremendous amount of damage to your position with our country. You are the currency manipulators, unfair traders and bullies of the South China Sea. We would not be saying this to you if you had not shown your arrogance in this matter that was really nothing. Nothing. You could have waited for a real issue, but your self importance has entirely engrossed and overwhelmed you with arrogance. This is not Burma, Taiwan, Hong Kong or the Philippines. You bully and intimidate them into submission. Some degree of diplomatic incompetence before the new administration has apparently emboldened you to believe you can treat Trump and America as some kind of child that must obey your rules. Wow, are you in for a surprise. Get over youself. Act like good neighbors instead of an organized bully gang. Do NOT make this mistake again.
Reagan cut and ran in Leb. Obl said this was what emboldened him.
I conclude you’re the untouchable class. あなたは怒っている人です. あなたはあなたの祖父からの悪い種です.
American are truly exceptional. exceptionally moronic and narcissistic believing in their own false and imagined greatness.
Emperor with no clothes.