President Donald Trump signed off Friday on new rules allowing top-level US officials to travel to Taiwan to meet their Taipei counterparts, a move that will anger Beijing.

The White House said Trump had signed the &quot;Taiwan Travel Act,&quot; which &quot;encourages visits between officials of the United States and Taiwan at all levels.&quot;

US representatives can already travel to democratic Taiwan and Taiwanese officials occasionally visit the White House, but meetings are usually low profile to avoid offending China.

Washington cut formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan in 1979 in favour of Beijing. But it maintains trade relations with the island and sells it weapons, angering China.

China sees Taiwan as a renegade province and has long stated its desire for reunification.

The new law describes Taiwan as &quot;a beacon of democracy&quot; in Asia, and states that &quot;Taiwan&#39;s democratic achievements inspire many countries and people in the region.&quot;

Senator Jim Inhofe welcomed the move, saying high-level meetings &quot;remain extremely valuable, especially as China continues their unprecedented reclamation in the South China Sea.&quot; 
He described the legislation as &quot;an important tool as we continue to ensure Taiwan has the ability to defend itself and remains a committed US partner in the region.&quot;

Trump&#39;s signature, announced late on Friday -- when the White House usually tries to bury news -- comes amid increasing tensions between the mainland and the self-ruled island.

Beijing has cut off official communications with Taipei because President Tsai Ing-wen refuses to acknowledge the democratic island as part of &quot;one China&quot;.

Washington cut formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan in 1979 in favour of Beijing

President Donald Trump signed off Friday on new rules allowing top-level US officials to travel to Taiwan to meet their Taipei counterparts, a move that will anger Beijing. The White House said Trump had signed the "Taiwan Travel Act," which "encourages visits between officials of the United States and Taiwan at all levels." US representatives can already travel to democratic Taiwan and Taiwanese officials occasionally visit the White House, but meetings are usually low profile to avoid offending China. Washington cut formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan in 1979 in favour of Beijing. But it maintains trade relations with the island and sells it weapons, angering China. China sees Taiwan as a renegade province and has long stated its desire for reunification. The new law describes Taiwan as "a beacon of democracy" in Asia, and states that "Taiwan's democratic achievements inspire many countries and people in the region." Senator Jim Inhofe welcomed the move, saying high-level meetings "remain extremely valuable, especially as China continues their unprecedented reclamation in the South China Sea." He described the legislation as "an important tool as we continue to ensure Taiwan has the ability to defend itself and remains a committed US partner in the region." Trump's signature, announced late on Friday -- when the White House usually tries to bury news -- comes amid increasing tensions between the mainland and the self-ruled island. Beijing has cut off official communications with Taipei because President Tsai Ing-wen refuses to acknowledge the democratic island as part of "one China".

Trump approves official travel to Taiwan

The Donald Trump administration has sanctioned sale of weapons worth $1.3 billion to Taiwan, a move that may provoke China.

Green-lighting sale of arms to Taiwan may be viewed by Beijing as a flagrant attempt on the part of the US to contravene its &#39;One China&#39; policy -- which states that Taiwan is a part of China.

But a US government official was keen to downplay the sale of military hardware and said the White House continued to honour Beijing&#39;s &#39;One China&#39; policy, which is deemed to be a crucial tenet to sustain diplomatic relations by the Asian powerhouse.

The official further said the transaction was part of the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act, under which the US can sell weapons to the country&nbsp;to &quot;maintain a sufficient self-defense capability&quot;.

The defence sales will help Taiwan upgrade its systems from analog to digital, the US government official said.

The US will be providing Taiwan with missiles, radar, torpedoes and parts of SM-2 missiles, Guardian reported.

The last US arms sale to Taiwan was in December 2015.

Announcement of the sale comes at a sensitive moment for the US and China, as President Trump is working to establish a partnership over trade differences and efforts to curb North Korea&#39;s nuclear program.

Just after winning election, Trump infuriated Beijing by accepting a congratulatory call from Taiwan&#39;s President Tsai Ing-wen, but once in office the president unequivocally endorsed the &quot;One China&quot; policy during a visit by Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

While Washington cut off formal diplomatic ties with Taipei, it has never made a clear statement about Taiwan&#39;s sovereignty, and the island enjoys many of the trappings of diplomatic relations with the US.

(With inputs from Reuters)

Approving sale of weapons worth $1.3 billion to Taiwan may be viewed by Beijing as a flagrant attempt on the part of the US to contravene the 'One China' policy

The Donald Trump administration has sanctioned sale of weapons worth $1.3 billion to Taiwan, a move that may provoke China. Green-lighting sale of arms to Taiwan may be viewed by Beijing as a flagrant attempt on the part of the US to contravene its 'One China' policy -- which states that Taiwan is a part of China. But a US government official was keen to downplay the sale of military hardware and said the White House continued to honour Beijing's 'One China' policy, which is deemed to be a crucial tenet to sustain diplomatic relations by the Asian powerhouse. The official further said the transaction was part of the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act, under which the US can sell weapons to the country to "maintain a sufficient self-defense capability". The defence sales will help Taiwan upgrade its systems from analog to digital, the US government official said. The US will be providing Taiwan with missiles, radar, torpedoes and parts of SM-2 missiles, Guardian reported. The last US arms sale to Taiwan was in December 2015. Announcement of the sale comes at a sensitive moment for the US and China, as President Trump is working to establish a partnership over trade differences and efforts to curb North Korea's nuclear program. Just after winning election, Trump infuriated Beijing by accepting a congratulatory call from Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen, but once in office the president unequivocally endorsed the "One China" policy during a visit by Chinese leader Xi Jinping. While Washington cut off formal diplomatic ties with Taipei, it has never made a clear statement about Taiwan's sovereignty, and the island enjoys many of the trappings of diplomatic relations with the US. (With inputs from Reuters)

US risks China's wrath by sanctioning arms sale to Taiwan

US President-elect Donald Trump&#39;s phone call to Taiwan leader&nbsp;Tsai Ing-wen has elicited divisive reactions in the&nbsp;United States and condemnation in China.

Trump&#39;s action has put US-China relations under sharp focus as he became the first US president or president-elect to breach the bilateral deal by speaking to a Taiwanese leader since 1978.

During the then president Richard Nixon&#39;s administration, Washington and Beijing&nbsp;had agreed to abide by the &#39;One China&#39; policy -- an agreement that views the People&#39;s Republic of China to be the sole legitimate representative of the Republic of China (Taiwan).

<a href="http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/opinion/2016-12/03/content_27560464.htm">China Daily</a>, a Beijing mouthpiece, said Trump&#39;s conversation with Tsai merely exposed his transition team&#39;s &quot;inexperience in dealing with foreign affairs&quot;. <a href="http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/1021730.shtml">Global Times</a>, another Chinese newspaper,&nbsp;said in its editorial that it &quot;hoped that Trump will gradually understand the reality&quot; of the understanding with China.

Back in the US, the Tump phone call to Tsai had split opinions of his own party members.

Texas Senator Ted Cruz&nbsp;didn&#39;t see anything wrong, with AFP quoting him as saying:&nbsp;&quot;I would much rather have Donald Trump talking to President Tsai than to Cuba&#39;s Raul Castro or Iran&#39;s Hasan Rouhani. This is an improvement.&quot;

Cruz&nbsp;took an indirect swipe at President Barack Obama, who&nbsp;had spoken with Rouhani by phone and met Castro on a trip to Cuba.

Ari Fleischer, White House spokesman under former president George W. Bush, didn&#39;t think that accepting the call was a bad idea.&nbsp;

&quot;China has been increasingly aggressive with us because they know we won&#39;t do anything meaningful about it,&quot; Fleischer tweeted. &quot;I don&#39;t mind Trump pushing back.&quot;

The Democrats, however,&nbsp;felt that the shift from the decades-long understanding with China was a worrying pattern.

&quot;What has happened in the last 48 hours is not a shift. These are major pivots in foreign policy w/out any plan. That&#39;s how wars start,&quot; tweeted Democratic Senator Chris Murphy.

Meanwhile, Vice President-elect Mike Pence downplayed the significance of the call, saying it was just a &quot;courtesy call&quot;.&nbsp;

&quot;It was nothing more than taking a courtesy call from a democratically elected leader,&quot; Pence told ABC&#39;s &quot;This Week&quot; program,&nbsp;

(WION)

Some Conservatives lauded the pivot in US-China relations but the Chinese media chastised Trump for his 'inexperience'

US President-elect Donald Trump's phone call to Taiwan leader Tsai Ing-wen has elicited divisive reactions in the United States and condemnation in China. Trump's action has put US-China relations under sharp focus as he became the first US president or president-elect to breach the bilateral deal by speaking to a Taiwanese leader since 1978. During the then president Richard Nixon's administration, Washington and Beijing had agreed to abide by the 'One China' policy -- an agreement that views the People's Republic of China to be the sole legitimate representative of the Republic of China (Taiwan). China Daily, a Beijing mouthpiece, said Trump's conversation with Tsai merely exposed his transition team's "inexperience in dealing with foreign affairs". Global Times, another Chinese newspaper, said in its editorial that it "hoped that Trump will gradually understand the reality" of the understanding with China. Back in the US, the Tump phone call to Tsai had split opinions of his own party members. Texas Senator Ted Cruz didn't see anything wrong, with AFP quoting him as saying: "I would much rather have Donald Trump talking to President Tsai than to Cuba's Raul Castro or Iran's Hasan Rouhani. This is an improvement." Cruz took an indirect swipe at President Barack Obama, who had spoken with Rouhani by phone and met Castro on a trip to Cuba. Ari Fleischer, White House spokesman under former president George W. Bush, didn't think that accepting the call was a bad idea. "China has been increasingly aggressive with us because they know we won't do anything meaningful about it," Fleischer tweeted. "I don't mind Trump pushing back." The Democrats, however, felt that the shift from the decades-long understanding with China was a worrying pattern. "What has happened in the last 48 hours is not a shift. These are major pivots in foreign policy w/out any plan. That's how wars start," tweeted Democratic Senator Chris Murphy. Meanwhile, Vice President-elect Mike Pence downplayed the significance of the call, saying it was just a "courtesy call". "It was nothing more than taking a courtesy call from a democratically elected leader," Pence told ABC's "This Week" program, (WION)

Trump's call to Taiwan leader elicits cheers from some Conservatives & boos from China

China has launched a diplomatic protest in reponse to Donald Trump&#39;s 10-minute phone conversation with the President of Taiwan, Tsai Ing-wen.&nbsp;

The US under Jimmy Carter broke off diplomatic relations with Taiwan in 1979, and it&#39;s believed that no US president or president-elect has spoken with a Taiwanese leader since.

The <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/china-issues-diplomatic-protest-donald-trump-phone-call-taiwan-president-a7453501.html?cmpid=facebook-post">Independent </a>reports that China&#39;s foreign ministry said it had lodged &quot;stern representations&quot; with what it termed &quot;the relevant US side&quot;, urging for caution rather than provocation concerning the relationship of the two major powers. It stated, &quot;The one China principle is the political basis of the China-US relationship.&quot;

Wang Yi, China&#39;s foreign minister, blamed Taiwan for the exchange. For his part, Trump claimed in a tweet that Tsai Ing-wen took the initiative to call him first.

The White House insisted there was no change to its stance on China. &quot;We remain firmly committed to our &#39;one China&#39; policy,&quot; said New Price, a national security spokesman for President Obama.

&quot;Our fundamental interest is in peaceful and stable cross-Strait relations,&quot; Price&nbsp;continued.

The Island of Taiwan, off the southeastern coast of&nbsp;mainland China, for years has been&nbsp;pushing to become&nbsp;a sovereign state, rather than a province of China.

(WION)

Trump is the first US President or President-elect in 37 years to speak to a leader of Taiwan that is seeking independence from China

China has launched a diplomatic protest in reponse to Donald Trump's 10-minute phone conversation with the President of Taiwan, Tsai Ing-wen. The US under Jimmy Carter broke off diplomatic relations with Taiwan in 1979, and it's believed that no US president or president-elect has spoken with a Taiwanese leader since. The Independent reports that China's foreign ministry said it had lodged "stern representations" with what it termed "the relevant US side", urging for caution rather than provocation concerning the relationship of the two major powers. It stated, "The one China principle is the political basis of the China-US relationship." Wang Yi, China's foreign minister, blamed Taiwan for the exchange. For his part, Trump claimed in a tweet that Tsai Ing-wen took the initiative to call him first. The White House insisted there was no change to its stance on China. "We remain firmly committed to our 'one China' policy," said New Price, a national security spokesman for President Obama. "Our fundamental interest is in peaceful and stable cross-Strait relations," Price continued. The Island of Taiwan, off the southeastern coast of mainland China, for years has been pushing to become a sovereign state, rather than a province of China. (WION)

China protests against Trump after phone conversation with Taiwan President

trump-taiwan

Trump Taiwan, News on Trump Taiwan, stories on Trump Taiwan, articles on Trump Taiwan, Trump Taiwan stories at Wion, Trump Taiwan news, Trump Taiwan latest news

trump taiwan

Trump approves official travel to Taiwan

US risks China's wrath by sanctioning arms sale to Taiwan

Trump's call to Taiwan leader elicits cheers from some Conservatives & boos from China

China protests against Trump after phone conversation with Taiwan President