Q：It is argued that the UNGA Resolution 2758 did not mention the representation of Taiwan in the UN, nor did it establish the one-China principle. What is your comment on that?

A：This is in complete disregard of history and facts, and a challenge to the international order underpinned by international law.

The UNGA Resolution 2758 adopted in 1971 has stated in black and white the decision “to restore all its rights to the People’s Republic of China and to recognize the representatives of its Government as the only legitimate representatives of China to the United Nations, and to expel forthwith the representatives of Chiang Kai-shek from the place which they unlawfully occupy at the United Nations and in all the organizations related to it”. This resolution settled once and for all the political, legal and procedural issues of China's representation in the UN, and it covered the whole country, including Taiwan. It also spelled out that China has one single seat in the UN, so there is no such thing as "two Chinas" or "one China, one Taiwan". If the representation of China did not cover Taiwan, why were “the representatives of Chiang Kai-shek” expelled? The resolution had no need to mention a particular region of a country. This shows precisely that the Government of the People’s Republic of China represents the whole of China, including Taiwan.

Judging from the historical process leading up to the adoption of Resolution 2758, the so-called international representation and international status of the Taiwan authorities have long been dismissed. During the UNGA deliberations on Resolution 2758, the statements made by countries like Algeria, Albania, Sudan and Zambia all showed that the restoration of the lawful seat of the People’s Republic of China in the United Nations marked the law-based settlement of the question regarding the representation of a country in international organizations. It did not produce a new subject of international law. The territorial scope of “China” as a subject of international law was not affected at all, and Taiwan’s status as a part of China has never changed. The US, together with several other countries, would not stop at it and went on to submit motions that proposed the so-called “dual representation” of China and the Taiwan authorities in the UN in an attempt to create “two Chinas”. This attempt ended in failure. It reflects the clear attitude of the UN and the international community on this matter.

International practice over the past 51 years shows that since the adoption of Resolution 2758, the UN and its specialized agencies and other international and regional organizations have unanimously observed the UNGA resolution by following the practice that “the United Nations considers ‘Taiwan’ as a province of China with no separate status”, “the ‘authorities’ in ‘Taipei’ are not considered to ...enjoy any form of governmental status”, and that the region should be referred to as “Taiwan, Province of China”. Over the past 73 years since the founding of the People’s Republic of China, 181 countries have established diplomatic ties with China on the basis of recognizing that “there is but one China in the world, and Taiwan is part of China’s territory”. All these reflect the international community’s observance of international law as well as the purposes and principles of the UN Charter. They also drive home the point that any matter regarding Taiwan’s participation in the activities of international organizations must be resolved under the one-China principle.