China\u2019s president did not mention President-elect Donald Trump when he spoke to the World Economic Forum in Davos , Switzerland on Tuesday. But Beijing is unhappy that the president-elect wants to negotiate the status of Taiwan. China\u2019s foreign ministry spokeswoman said Monday that challenging longstanding policy would \u201cbe like lifting a rock to drop it on one\u2019s own feet.\u201d
Taiwan, the island of 23 million people, has been self-ruled since 1949, when leader Chiang Kai-Shek fled the Communists and settled here. But Beijing still considers Taiwan part of China, according to the so-called \u201cOne China\u201d policy, reports CBS News correspondent Adriana Diaz. It\u2019s non-negotiable to them, but Mr. Trump wants to negotiate \u2013 and caught in the middle is Taiwan.
Something\u2019s missing far above Taipei\u2019s skyline \u2013 tourists from mainland China.
Over the last six months, mainland visitors at the Taipei 101 observation deck and the high-end mall below have dropped by nearly 30 percent.
\u201cWhy do you think that was?\u201d Diaz asked.
\u201cPolitical reasons, obviously,\u201d Michael Liu said.
Liu, who represents the skyscraper, said China cut tourism to punish Taiwan\u2019s independence-leaning president, Tsai Ing-wen, for not endorsing the One China Principle.
\u201cIs there concern that things might get worse?\u201d Diaz asked.
In a major break with U. S. diplomatic policy, President-elect Donald Trump spoke to the leader of Taiwan in a 10-minute telephone conversation Fr…
\u201cYes, I mean some people worry about that,\u201d Liu said.
Though life appears normal in Taiwan\u2019s bustling markets, tensions are mounting with their neighbor. China cut all official contact with Taiwan in June, and its military is testing the boundaries.
For her part, President Tsai is walking a political tight rope. Last month\u2019s precedent-breaking phone call to Mr. Trump didn\u2019t help. It partially legitimized her leadership, infuriating China.
\u201cI don\u2019t know why we have to be bound by a \u2018One China\u2019 policy,\u201d Mr. Trump said on Fox News last December.
Now Mr. Trump keeps twisting the knife. He told the Wall Street Journal Friday, \u201ceverything is under negotiation, including One China.\u201d
That prompted fighting words and images in Chinese state media.
An editorial Monday said if Mr. Trump doesn\u2019t back down, Beijing will have \u201cno choice but to take off the gloves.\u201d
Locals say he\u2019s both helping and hurting Taiwan. One woman said she likes Mr. Trump because he has power. Another said, \u201cI think he will make… China angry. So maybe it\u2019s not good for us.\u201d
Bill Stanton, who ran the American Institute in Taiwan, our unofficial embassy, said Taiwan shouldn\u2019t be used as a bargaining chip with China.
\u201cHe needs to avoid doing anything that\u2019s going to upset the status quo in the Taiwan Straight,\u201d Stanton said.
Taiwan\u2019s already feeling the pressure diplomatically. Last week, when China offered Nigeria a $40 billion investment, in turn Nigeria agreed to close Taiwan\u2019s trade office in its capital. Many in Taiwan fear if Mr. Trump uses Taiwan as bait after taking office, their future will be on the line.<\/p>\n

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