The freewheeling Squirrel-Hair is taking us into uncharted territory

What is the precedent for this?

President-elect Donald Trump spoke with the president of Taiwan by phone on Friday, in a move likely to infuriate Beijing and hinder US-China relations. 

"President-elect Trump spoke with President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan, who offered her congratulations," according to a readout of the call released by Trump's transition team.

"During the discussion, they noted the close economic, political, and security ties" between Taiwan and the United States, the statement continued. "President-elect Trump also congratulated President Tsai on becoming President of Taiwan earlier this year."

The call, first reported by the Financial Times, is the first time a US president has directly spoken with Taiwan's leadership in more than 30 years. The White House was not made aware of the call until after it occurred, an administration official told Business Insider.

The US suspended formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan in 1979 after establishing a One China position — which states that "there is but one China and Taiwan is part of China" — in an effort to establish diplomatic channels with Beijing.

Beijing views Taiwan as a province of China, whereas Taiwan — which has its own democratically elected government — has a more complicated view of the nations' relationship.

"There is no change to our longstanding policy on cross-Strait issues," said Ned Price, a spokesman for the White House's National Security Council.

"We remain firmly committed to our 'one China' policy based on the three Joint Communiques and the Taiwan Relations Act. Our fundamental interest is in peaceful and stable cross-Strait relations," he added.

Ing-wen, who was elected the first female president of Taiwan in May, told The Washington Post over the summer that she hopes Chinese President Xi Jinping "can appreciate that Taiwan is a democratic society in which the leader has to follow the will of the people."

Analysts were quick to point out that the phone call will likely infuriate Beijing.

"Trump has phone call w Taiwan President, 1st by US Pres or Pres-elect since 1979," goepolitical expert Ian Bremmer, president of Eurasia Group, tweeted on Friday. "Beijing will be absolutely incensed."

"Trump almost surely unaware of Taiwan-China sensitivities before taking President's call," Bremmer added. "They don't yet have Asia expertise on team."

Evan Medeiros, former Asia director at the White House national security council, told the Financial Times that "the Chinese leadership will see this as a highly provocative action, of historic proportions."

It sure sounds like the kind of thing he would think up himself. It will be interesting to see just how the decision to do this was arrived at. Maybe there wasn't much of a decision process at all.