Advertisement
Advertisement
US-China relations
Get more with myNEWS
A personalised news feed of stories that matter to you
Learn more
US Secretary of State John Kerry speaks to Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in this September 2016 file photo. Photo: AFP

America will stay committed to one-China policy, John Kerry tells Beijing

Reassurance given through phone call to Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi

The United States will stay committed to the one-China policy, outgoing US Secretary of State John Kerry told Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in a phone call on Thursday.

The call between the two powers’ top diplomats came days ahead of a stopover in the US by Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen.

Beijing has also in recent weeks expressed unease over US president-elect Donald Trump’s earlier statement casting doubt on the one-China policy.

The one-China policy, which maintains that Taiwan is part of China, has been the bedrock of Sino-US relations for four decades.

During the phone call with Wang, Kerry also stressed the importance of Sino-US ties, state broadcaster China Central Television reported.

Bilateral ties have been tested in recent months after Trump’s hawkish remarks on a wide range of issues including Taiwan, the South China Sea and trade.

Beijing has expressed concerns over the incoming US president’s decision to pack his administration with many vocal veteran China critics, and has been seeking Washington’s reassurance on the Taiwan issue, seen as the most sensitive issue in Sino-US ties.

“The one-China policy based on the three Sino-American joint communiques remains the consensus of both [Democratic and Republican] parties,” Kerry was cited as saying.

Wang also urged the incoming US administration to deal carefully with bilateral ties and to heed Beijing’s concerns on a host of issues concerning its national interests and sovereignty.

Post