U.S. State Department Removes "Taiwan Part of China" Reference
United Daily News, May 11, 2022
MOFA: U.S. Commitment to Taiwan Rock-Solid
On May 5, the United States Department of State made a substantial update to its U.S.-Taiwan relations "fact sheet.” The references describing that Taiwan is part of China and the U.S. does not support Taiwan independence were removed. They were replaced with a statement that the United States has a longstanding one-China policy, which is guided by the Taiwan Relations Act, the three U.S.-China Joint Communiqués, and the Six Assurances. The State Department spokesperson told the reporter that the U.S. one-China policy has not changed. Both the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) and Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs separately stated yesterday that the U.S. commitment to Taiwan is rock-solid.
However, Spokesman Zhao Lijian of mainland China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that "there is but one China in the world, Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory, with the government of the People's Republic of China as the sole legal government of China" and that "these facts are the consensus of the international community and are universally recognized norms governing international relations."
According to Zhao, the United States has made solemn commitments on the Taiwan issue, the “One China” principle in the Three Joint Communiqués. Zhao added that the United States changing the U.S.-Taiwan relations "fact sheet" is an act of political manipulation to hollow out the “One China” principle and an attempt to change the status quo of the Taiwan Strait, which will inevitably stir up a fire that only burns the United States.
As of last week, the Department of State website still carried the old version fact sheet under the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs dated August 31, 2018, which stated at the beginning that "the United States and Taiwan enjoy a robust unofficial relationship;" "In the 1979 U.S.-P.R.C. Joint Communiqué, the United States recognized the government of the People's Republic of China as the sole legal government of China; acknowledging the Chinese position that there is but one China, and Taiwan is part of China."
Replaced with Long-Standing “One China” Policy
The new edition does not quote the text of the three U.S.-China Joint Communiqués but adds "the United States has a longstanding one-China policy, which is guided by the Taiwan Relations Act, the three U.S.-China Joint Communiques, and the Six Assurances."
The new version uses "people-to-people ties" and "unofficial relations" to describe the unofficial nature of U.S.-Taiwan relations. Though the United States does not have diplomatic relations with Taiwan, we have a robust unofficial relationship as well as an abiding interest in maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. Consistent with the Taiwan Relations Act, the United States makes available defense articles and services as necessary to enable Taiwan to maintain a sufficient self-defense capability. The United States continues to encourage the peaceful resolution of cross-strait differences consistent with the wishes and best interests of the people of Taiwan." Meanwhile, the State Department Taiwan page still retains part of the 2018 wording.
At the bottom of the Taiwan page, under "U.S. Relationship" there are sections on "U.S.-Taiwan relations" and "economic relations." Although in smaller font size, the "U.S.-Taiwan relations" retains the passage that "Taiwan is part of China".
In an e-mail to Voice of America (VOA), Richard Bush, former Chairman of the American Institute in Taiwan, stated that he could only speculate on why the Department of State made this change. The previous presentation was confusing. "If the U.S. position is that Taiwan is part of China, we would have used the word 'recognize'. In fact, since June 1950, no U.S. administration has said that Taiwan is part of China, whether we recognize the Republic of China or the People's Republic of China."
New Narrative Awaits Clarification
Douglas Paal, former director of the AIT, said in an email to VOA that it appears to be unilaterally changing the status quo on the part of the United States. It remains to be seen whether the administration follows with a more formal policy statement, such as an upcoming speech by Secretary of State Blinken, rather than a brief account online. He argued that while President Biden reiterated the U.S. position in a video meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, the State Department's new version of the U.S.-Taiwan relations fact sheet is open to interpretation and should be viewed as an intentional change unless the Department of State makes further modifications or clarifications.
In response to the inquires of this reporter, the State Department spokesperson said that the U.S. “One China” policy has not changed. For more than 40 years, the U.S. “One China” policy has been based on the Taiwan Relations Act, the three U.S.-China Joint Communiqués, and the Six Assurances. However, the spokesperson did not explain why the content of the official website was updated at this time.