US Vice President-elect Mike Pence defends Donald Trump’s phone conversation with Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, which drew criticism from China.
Pence appeared on NBC on Sunday, saying the Friday conversation with the Asian president was just a “courtesy call.”
The former Indiana governor asserted that the future president also talked with Chinese President Xi Jinping “in the same manner.”
“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 that was not a discussion about policy. We’re going to be prepared, after January 20th to advance what will be President Trump’s agenda on the world stage and will deal with policy at that time,” said the vice president-elect.
The telephone conversation prompted a response from Beijing on Saturday, saying the contact was a “ploy by the Taiwan side.”
Beijing regards Taiwan as part of its own…