Taiwan’s President Lai says he would be happy to speak with Donald Trump

Key points

• US and Taiwan presidents have not spoken since Washington shifted diplomatic recognition ⁠to Beijing from Taipei in 1979. Taiwan’s President William Lai Ching-te has said he would be “happy” to talk to United States President Donald Trump – a conversation that would break more than four decades of diplomatic protocol and risk angering China.
• Trump told reporters on Wednesday that he would speak to Lai, as the White House weighed a massive arms package sale to the democratic island.
• It was the second time since a summit in Beijing last week that Trump has said he would call the Taiwanese leader.
• US and Taiwanese presidents have not spoken directly since Washington shifted diplomatic recognition ⁠to Beijing from Taipei in 1979. China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has never renounced the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control.
• On Wednesday, Trump reiterated he would speak to...