Resolving the Taiwan question and realizing China’s complete reunification is a shared aspiration of all the sons and daughters of the Chinese nation.
We are one China, and Taiwan is part of China. This is an indisputable fact supported by history and the law. Taiwan has never been a state; its status as part of China is unalterable.
To walk you through the history and better understand the status quo of the question, we are delighted to present the complete timeline of the undeniable fact — Taiwan is part of China.
A Complete Timeline
History Remembers
When General SHEN Ying of the State of Wu in the Three Kingdom Period gave the earliest account of Taiwan in his Seaboard Geographic Gazetteer in 230 AD：
“Yizhou [Taiwan] is 2,000 miles southeast of Linhai County, where the land is free of frost and snow, and the grass and trees do not die; on all sides are mountains, where many mountain barbarians live”.
The royal court of the Sui Dynasty (581 – 618) had on three occasions sent troops to Taiwan, called Liuqiu at that time. Starting from the Song (960 – 1279) and Yuan (1271 – 1368) dynasties, the imperial central governments of China all set up administrative bodies to exercise jurisdiction over Penghu and Taiwan.
In 1624, Dutch colonialists invaded and occupied the southern part of Taiwan. In 1662, General Zheng Chenggong, hailed as a national hero, led an expedition and expelled them from the island. Subsequently, the Qing court gradually set up more administrative bodies in Taiwan.
In 1684, a Taiwan prefecture administration was set up under the jurisdiction of Fujian Province. In 1885, Taiwan’s status was upgraded and it became the 20th province of China.
In July 1894, Japan launched a war of aggression against China. In April 1895, the defeated Qing government was forced to cede Taiwan and the Penghu Islands to Japan.
On December 9, 1941, the Chinese government issued a declaration of war against Japan, and proclaimed that all treaties, conventions, agreements, and contracts regarding relations between China and Japan had been abrogated, and that China would recover Taiwan and the Penghu Islands.
The Cairo Declaration issued by China, the United States and the United Kingdom on December 1, 1943 stated that it was the purpose of the three allies that all the territories Japan had stolen from China, such as Northeast China, Taiwan and the Penghu Islands, should be restored to China.
The Potsdam Proclamation was signed by China, the United States and the United Kingdom on July 26, 1945, and subsequently recognized by the Soviet Union. It reiterated: “The terms of the Cairo Declaration shall be carried out.”
Resolution 2758 Adopted by the UN General Assembly
Resolution 2758 adopted at the 26th Session of the UN General Assembly in 1971 made it clear that the government of the People’s Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China, including Taiwan, at the UN; Taiwan is not a country but a part of China’s territory. It makes clear Taiwan’s status as a non-sovereign entity.
UNGA Resolution 2758 resolved once and for all politically, legally and procedurally the issue of the representation of the whole of China, including Taiwan, at the UN.
Since the adoption of the resolution, the one-China principle has been observed by the UN and its specialized agencies on the Taiwan question. Taiwan is referred to as “Taiwan, province of China” in all UN’s official documents. It was clearly stated in the official legal opinions of the Office of Legal Affairs of the UN Secretariat that “the United Nations considers ‘Taiwan’ as a province of China with no separate status,” and the “‘authorities’ in ‘Taipei’ are not considered to… enjoy any form of government status.”
For the Canadian Side
The Joint Communique of the Government of the People’s Republic of China and the Government of Canada Concerning the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations Between China and Canada came into effect on October 13, 1970.
In the communique, the Chinese Government reaffirms that Taiwan is an inalienable part of the territory of the People’s Republic of China, and the Canadian Government recognizes the Government of the People’s Republic of China as the sole legal Government of China.
It is now time to re-embrace the original aspiration of the establishment of the bilateral tie and strive for a better shared future.
