China views Taiwan as a renegade province and, since 1979, the US has acknowledged Beijing’s claim that Taiwan is part of China, with US-China relations governed by a set of protocols known as the „One China“ policy.
„The ‚One China‘ principle is the political foundation of Sino-US relations and it is non-negotiable. We urge the relevant side in the US to recognize the high sensitivity of the Taiwan issue and abide by the pledges by successive US administrations from both parties,“ spokesman Lu Kang said.
He was responding to a question about Trump’s remarks Friday in The Wall Street Journal in which he said, „Everything is under negotiation, including ‚One China.‘ “
„The pledges include adopting the ‚One China‘ policy, adhering to the principles in the three Sino-US joint communiques and properly handling the Taiwan issue. Only doing so would prevent the healthy and stable development of Sino-US relations as well as bilateral cooperation in major areas from being affected,“ Lu added.
Chinese state media slams Tillerson over South China Sea
The Chinese official highlighted the international community’s view on the issue in a statement.
„There is only one China in the world. Taiwan is an inseparable part of Chinese territory and the People’s Republic of China is the sole legitimate government representing China,“ Lu said. „These are facts recognized by the international community and no one can change this. “
China’s foreign ministry lodged a complaint last month with the United States after a phone call between Trump and Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen overturned decades of diplomatic protocol, because there are no formal diplomatic relations between the US and the province.
At the time, Trump said he was merely accepting a congratulatory call from the Taiwan leader, tweeting, „Interesting how the U. S. sells Taiwan billions of dollars of military equipment but I should not accept a congratulatory call. „

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The two positions mark significant changes in American foreign policy.
“If you get along and if Russia is really helping us, why would anybody have sanctions if somebody’s doing some really great things?” Trump told the Journal, referring to the possibility of lifting sanctions against Russia if they proved helpful in fighting terrorism and in other areas.
Trump told the publication he would keep sanctions put in place in December—imposed in response to Russian cyber attacks and interference in the 2016 election—“at least for a period of time” but didn’t specify otherwise, according to the report.
In a press conference Wednesday, Trump said it would be an “ asset ” if Putin liked him.
“I understand that they would like to meet, and that’s absolutely fine with me,” he told the Journal of the Russian leader.
Trump first indicated he would challenge the decades-long American diplomatic consensus concerning the One China policy in early December, when he spoke with the Taiwanese president over the phone, an unprecedented step.
The One China policy holds that Taiwan and China are part of the same state.
“Everything is under negotiation including One China,” Trump told the Journal, adding later, in reference to Taiwan: “We sold them $2 billion of military equipment last year. We can sell them $2 billion of the latest and greatest military equipment but we’re not allowed to accept a phone call. First of all it would have been very rude not to accept the phone call.”
Trump maintained his criticism of China as a “currency manipulator,” but did say he would not immediately use that label.
“I would talk to them first,” he said, adding: “Certainly they are manipulators. But I’m not looking to do that.”
“Instead of saying, ‘We’re devaluating our currency,’ they say, ‘Oh, our currency is dropping.’ It’s not dropping. They’re doing it on purpose,” he said. a“Our companies can’t compete with them now because our currency is strong and it’s killing us.”

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President-elect Donald Trump has suggested that he is open to lifting the recently-imposed sanctions on Russia if Vladimir Putin assists the U. S. in its anti-terror initiatives and in other matters.
But the sanctions, imposed by President Obama in late December in response to Russia’s alleged attempts to influence the presidential election via cyberattacks, will remain for „at least for a period of time,“ Trump told The Wall Street Journal in an interview published Friday night.
„If you get along and if Russia is really helping us, why would anybody have sanctions if somebody’s doing some really great things? “ he asked.
Trump also said that once he’s sworn in as the 45th president, he will happily meet with Putin. „I understand that they would like to meet, and that’s absolutely fine with me,“ he said.
Also noteworthy was Trump’s suggestion that the American „One China“ policy — which views Taiwan as part of China, not as a separate country — could be modified.
„Everything is under negotiation including ‚One China,'“ Trump told The Wall Street Journal.
Such a move would anger China, considering it views Taiwan as a renegade province. China, for example, lodged a formal complaint with the U. S. after Trump accepted a congratulatory phone call last month from Taiwanese president Tsai Ing-wen.
Trump has repeatedly said in the past that he would label China a currency manipulator, but he told The Wall Street Journal he’s not looking to do that on his first day in the Oval Office. „I would talk to them first,“ he said. „Certainly they are manipulators. But I’m not looking to do that. „
But he didn’t back down from his previous criticism of the Chinese. „Instead of saying, ‚We’re devaluating our currency,‘ they say, ‚Oh, our currency is dropping.‘ It’s not dropping,“ he said. „They’re doing it on purpose… Our companies can’t compete with them now because our currency is strong and it’s killing us. „
Trump did have kind words to say about Chinese leader Xi Jinping , though, who sent the incoming commander in chief a holiday greeting card. „I have a beautiful card from the chairman,“ he said.

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Zhou Youguang, a linguist considered the father of modern China’s Pinyin Romanization writing system, died Saturday at the age of 111.
Born in 1906 during China’s last imperial dynasty, the Qing, Zhou died at his home in Beijing one day after celebrating his birthday, according to state broadcaster Chinese Central Television and other official media outlets.
After receiving a Western-style education at Shanghai’s St. John’s University, Zhou moved to the United States and for a time worked as a banker on Wall Street.
Returning to China along with other idealistic youths after the communist victory in 1949, he was placed in charge of a committee working on a new system to allow Chinese characters to be converted into Roman script.
Adopted by the People’s Republic in 1958, Pinyin has virtually become the global standard due to its simplicity and consistency, although some Chinese communities, especially in Taiwan and Hong Kong, continue to use alternatives. In the era of computers and smartphones, Pinyin has become more ubiquitous than ever, with traditionalists lamenting that it is supplanting the original Chinese characters from which it derives.
Zhou went on to work on an official Chinese translation of the Encyclopedia Britannica and write on topics including the evolution of Chinese historical languages and scripts.
In his later years, he became a scathing critic of the ruling Communist Party and an advocate for political reform, making him persona non grata at official events. He continued writing even after age 100, although many of his books were banned and the government censored discussion about his work online.
Zhou told the U. S.’s National Public Radio in a 2011 interview that he hoped to live long enough to see China’s government acknowledge that the bloody crackdown on the 1989 Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protests was a mistake and the victims bore no guilt. That has yet to happen, and the entire topic remains taboo.
„Ordinary people no longer believe in the Communist Party anymore,“ Zhou said in the interview. „The vast majority of Chinese intellectuals advocate democracy. “
The Chargers are moving  to L. A., Obama’s legacy:  part 1, California’s drought conditions  have improved in the northern part of the state, and Sean McVay, the new Los Angeles Rams coach , becomes the youngest NFL head coach in modern history.
Video by Al Seib / Los Angeles Times
The family of 16-year-old Jose Mendez, who was fatally shot by the LAPD last year, released surveillance video of the February 2016 shooting.
Donald Trump’s independent streak was on vivid display at Wednesday’s news conference. Is the great California drought finally calling it quits? Michelle King has made no big waves in her first year running Los Angeles Unified. A state watchdog agency is investigating political donations connected to real estate developer Samuel Leung.
Video by Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times
Video by Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times

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BEIJING: Zhou Youguang, a linguist considered the father of modern China’s Hanyu Pinyin Romanisation system, died on Saturday (Jan 14). He was 111.
Born in 1906 during China’s Qing dynasty, Zhou died at his home in Beijing, one day after celebrating his birthday, according to state broadcaster Chinese Central Television and other official media.
He moved to the United States after receiving a Western-style education at Shanghai’s St. John’s University, and for a time worked as a banker on Wall Street.
After the communist victory in 1949, Zhou returned to China and was placed in charge of a committee working on a new writing system to allow Chinese characters to be converted into Roman script.
Adopted by the People’s Republic of China in 1958, Hanyu Pinyin has virtually become the global standard due to its simplicity and consistency, although some Chinese communities, especially in Taiwan and Hong Kong, continue to use alternatives.
During the Cultural Revolution, Zhou was sent to live in the countryside and be „re-educated“, like many intellectuals at that time. He spent two years in a labour camp.
After 1980, Zhou worked on an official Chinese translation of the Encyclopedia Britannica and write on topics including the evolution of Chinese historical languages and scripts.
From 2000, he wrote 10 books, some of which have been banned in China. In his old age Zhou became an advocate for political reform, and was critical of the Communist Party of China’s attacks on traditional Chinese culture after it came into power.

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Then statement came after Vietnamese Communist Party chief Nguyen Phu Trong held talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Saturday.
The communique, released by China’s Xinhua news agency after the talks, described the discussions of bilateral relations by the top officials as “candid.”
Beijing and Hanoi agreed to “manage well their maritime difference, avoid actions that complicate the situation and escalate tensions, and safeguard the peace and stability of the South China Sea,“ the agency said.
The joint communique also said that the parties agreed to continue to „fully and effectively“ implement the Declaration on the Conduct (DOC) of Parties in the South China Sea and strive for the early conclusion of a Code of Conduct (COC) on the basis of the declaration.
During the talks, Xi also urged both China and Vietnam to increase communication and consolidate mutual trust in order to lay a solid political foundation for the settlement of disputes in the South China Sea and work together on maritime exploration.
He stressed that China “is willing to work with Vietnam to advance their comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership in a sustained, healthy and steady way, making more contributions to peace, cooperation, development and prosperity in Asia and the world as a whole.”
Conflicting territorial claims in the South China Sea have become a stumbling block in relations between the neighboring states in recent years.
Hanoi has started a quite military buildup in order to be able to secure its 200-nautical mile Exclusive Economic Zone as Beijing’s claims currently span almost all of the South China Sea.
READ MORE: ‚Stop island-building, prevent access‘: Tillerson threatens tough stance over S. China Sea
Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Taiwan also have claims in the sea, through which $5 trillion worth of maritime trade passes every year. 
READ MORE: Taiwan scrambles jets, navy vessels to ‘surveil & control’ passage of Chinese warships
Xinhua said that China and Vietnam have jointly patrolled and explored for oil in the Beibu Gulf in the South Chia Sea, calling it one of the “success stories” that “demonstrate that both countries are committed to shelving their maritime differences through cooperation rather than confrontation, which will yield more win-win results and larger-scale cooperation.”

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WASHINGTON – The incoming U. S. administration’s tough talk against China has set the stage for showdowns on everything from security to trade and cyberspace, but contradictory signals are sowing uncertainty over how far President-elect Donald Trump is prepared to go in confronting Beijing.
Highlighting the contested South China Sea as a potential flash point, Trump’s secretary of state nominee Rex Tillerson threw out an explosive challenge to Beijing on Wednesday by calling for it be denied access to artificial islands it is building in the strategic waterway.
A Trump transition adviser said that Tillerson, Trump’s pick to be America’s top diplomat, did not mean to suggest the new administration would impose a naval blockade, which would risk armed confrontation with China, something the new administration was not seeking.
But another official authorized to speak on behalf of the transition team pushed back on that view, saying Tillerson “did not misspeak” when he said China should be barred from its man-made islands.
Amid the conflicting signals on policy, the team appears to be making progress on plans for a major naval build-up in East Asia to counter China’s rise.
The transition adviser spoke about specifics under consideration, such as basing a second aircraft carrier in the region, deploying more destroyers, attack submarines and missile-defense batteries and expanding or adding new bases in Japan and Australia.
They are also looking at installing “air force long-range strike assets” in South Korea, bordering China’s nuclear-armed neighbor North Korea, said the adviser who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
Trump, who succeeds President Barack Obama on Jan. 20, has vowed to greatly expand the U. S. Navy to 350 ships, but his transition team has not made clear how he will fund this, amid other massive spending plans.
China’s Foreign Ministry said it could not guess what Tillerson meant by his remarks, which came after Trump questioned Washington’s long-standing and highly sensitive “one-China” policy over Taiwan. But an influential Chinese state-run tabloid warned Friday that blocking Chinese access to South China Sea islands would require the United States to “wage war.”
Trump’s pick for defense secretary, retired U. S. Marine Gen. James Mattis, did not endorse Tillerson’s message on the South China Sea, which would seem at odds with Washington’s own long-standing commitment to freedom of navigation for all.
Asked about the remarks at his confirmation hearing Thursday, Mattis said China’s actions in the South China Sea were part of a broader attack on the world order, but said the State, Defense and Treasury Departments needed to put together an integrated policy “so we are not dealing with an incomplete or an incoherent strategy.”
The conflicting messages underscore the incoming administration’s struggle in crafting an approach to one of the biggest foreign policy challenges facing Trump, who during his election campaign repeatedly bashed China, saying it was “killing” and “raping” America on trade.
A former U. S. official who has informally advised Trump’s transition team said it may not have fully thought through the risks of any new U. S. military or trade pressure on China.
“We should not underestimate China’s willingness to retaliate in kind,” said the former official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
As part of a drive to protect American jobs, Trump has threatened to declare China a currency manipulator — even though economists say Beijing has been seeking to prop up, not weaken, its currency. He has also threatened to slap punitive tariffs on Chinese goods, risking a trade war that could hurt both countries and the global economy.
Trump has yet to name to his national security team high-level members with deep experience of the region, leading some analysts to question whether the new administration will have enough expertise to translate rhetoric on a more robust Asia policy into action.
But Trump has appointed two harsh China critics to his trade team — Peter Navarro, an academic who authored a book entitled “Death by China,” and Robert Lighthizer, a former Reagan administration official.
Trump advisers dismiss concerns their approach could prove risky or counterproductive, arguing that a “peace through strength” stance will put real muscle behind U. S. policy in the region after decades of under-resourcing due to U. S. distractions elsewhere in the world.
“Once we start correcting the military imbalance, I actually think you will get more cooperation rather than less,” the Trump adviser said.
Trump and his Cabinet nominees have also vowed to step up pressure on China to rein in North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs, including by holding out the possibility of “secondary sanctions” on Chinese entities found to be violating sanctions on Pyongyang.
But analysts say China may be in no mood to cooperate if Washington is leaning on it on other issues. Those include U. S. pressure on Beijing to curb its hacking of U. S. entities.
China’s official responses to recent broadsides have been measured so far as they wait to see how Trump will act once he takes office.
“We have seen many conflicting messages from people within his prospective administration,” said Tu Xinquan, a trade expert at Beijing’s University of International Business and Economics.
But analysts say confronting Beijing over hot-button nationalist issues like Taiwan and the South China Sea could trigger strong reactions, especially in a year when President Xi Jinping is seeking to further consolidate power at a congress of the ruling Communist Party held every five years.
Zha Daojiong, a professor at Peking University, said the theme of clash of civilizations was becoming increasingly popular in Chinese circles and this was ominous.
“This does not bode well at all. … And it means that the continued war drums from America on the South China Sea would not help matters at all.”

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