China-Taiwan Relations – Burning Issues

Table of Contents

ROC VS PRC

Ethnic Han Chinese settlers, primarily merchants, began to arrive in Taiwan in the 17th century.
The island, now inhabited by a Han Chinese majority, many of whom identify as distinctly Taiwanese.
The indigenous peoples account for only around 2% of the population.

Taiwan was annexed by the Qing dynasty in the late 1600s.
It was later ceded to Japan in 1895 by imperial China in accordance with a treaty of Sino-Japanese War.
Japan governed it as a colony until 1945, after it lost to ROC military forces.

China’s nationalist government (KMT) was defeated in a civil war by the communists in 1949.
The KMT government (ROC) had been exiled to Taiwan.
KMT, insisted his government continued to represent all Chinese people on both the island and the mainland.
Washington and most Western powers affirmed the ROC’s stance.

Washington’s position began to shift under the Nixon administration.
The ROC lost its seat representing China at the United Nations in 1971 to Beijing.
Since 1971, the PRC replaced the Republic of China.
Washington formally recognised PRC in 1979.

Beijing and Taipei sharply disagree on the island’s status.
The PRC asserts that there is only “one China” and that Taiwan is an inalienable part of it.
Beijing says Taiwan is bound by an understanding reached in 1992.
An agreement was reached b/w Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the Kuomintang (KMT) in 1992 known as “Consensus”.
It states that there is only “one China” but allows for differing interpretations.
The tacit agreement underlying the 1992 Consensus is that Taiwan will not seek independence.

However, the island’s current president, Tsai Ing-wen, leader of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)- Rejected the consensus.
In a January 2019 speech, she declared the “one country, two systems” framework advanced by Beijing unacceptable.