After Donald Trump’s election in late 2016, the U.S. president-elect took an unprecedented phone call from Taiwan’s leader Tsai Ing-Wen, shattering decades of diplomatic protocol and prompting angry protests from China.
Now, Beijing’s critics are looking for a similar show of support from President-elect Joe Biden, who has promised a tough line against China after a career of advocating engagement. While Tsai has already welcomed Biden’s win on Twitter, Taiwanese Foreign Minister Joseph Wu told lawmakers Thursday that Taipei was "considering various ways” to congratulate the new president.
The speculation about a simple phone call illustrates Biden’s challenge in establishing his own China policy after four norm-breaking years under Trump: Restore the status quo and face accusations of weakness, or continue Trump’s provocations and risk undercutting cooperation with Beijing on issues of greater domestic concern like trade and climate change.