Is Taiwan a Country? Why the US and China Are So Worked ...

The country we know as Taiwan — a mountainous island of 23 million people just across the Taiwan Strait from southern China — is generally ... Close Searchfor: Search TodayInHistory MajorWars&Events NEW!TheRussia–UkraineWar AmericanRevolution TheCivilWar WorldWarI WorldWarII ColdWar KoreanWar VietnamWar GlobalWaronTerror Movements Women’sRights CivilRights AbolitionofSlavery FamousPeople U.S.Presidents WorldLeaders MilitaryLeaders Outlaws&Lawmen Activists Artists&Writers Celebrities Scientists Philosophers Eras ModernEra 2000s 1900s 1800s EarlyModern 1700s 1600s 1500s TheMiddleAges ClassicalEra Prehistory Topics BlackHistory Slavery Women’sHistory PrisonersofWar FirsthandAccounts Technology&Weaponry Aviation&Spaceflight Naval&Maritime Politics MilitaryHistory Art&Literature News Entertainment&Culture HistoricalFigures Photography WildWest SocialHistory NativeAmericanHistory OurMagazines AmericanHistory America’sCivilWar AviationHistory CivilWarTimes MilitaryHistory MilitaryHistoryQuarterly Vietnam WildWest WorldWarII More FeatureStories Interviews Book&FilmReviews Biographies Quizzes Videos Portfolios Weapons&Gear BattleMaps AskProf.History HistoricalControversies GetOurNewsletter Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube Close MostPopular Skiptocontent AmissilelaunchedbytherocketforceoftheChinesePeople'sLiberationArmytargetingareastotheeastoftheTaiwanonAug.4,2022,inresponsetoavisitbyU.S.HouseSpeakerNancyPelosi. ShareThisArticle FrankZappafamouslysaid,“Youcan’tbearealcountryunlessyouhaveabeerandanairline.”Well,Taiwanhasbothofthose—plusitsowngovernment,apresident,itsowncurrency,economy,andmilitary,anditholdsfreeanddemocraticelections.Zappawouldsurelyapprove. ButwhileTaiwanisdefactoindependent,Chinaclaimsitaspartofitsintegralterritory,andTaiwanisnotrecognizedasanationbythemajorityoftheworld’scountries.Inthissense,Taiwanlacksdejureindependence,meaningindependencethatisrecognizedbyothercountries. ThecountryweknowasTaiwan—amountainousislandof23millionpeoplejustacrosstheTaiwanStraitfromsouthernChina—isgenerallyreferredtoas“Taiwan”incommonparlance,whetherthisisinChineseorEnglish.TheofficialnameofTaiwan,however,istheRepublicofChina. MakingSenseoftheROC,KMT,CCPandPRC TheRepublicofChina,orROC,wasoriginallyfoundedontheChinesemainlandinOctober1911.TheROCwasbroughttoTaiwanin1945,whenJapan,whichhadcontrolledtheislandasacolonysince1895,handeditbackfollowingWorldWarII.In1949,however,theKuomintang,orKMT,therulingpartyoftheROCstate,wasitselfdefeatedintheChineseCivilWarbytheChineseCommunistParty,orCCP,andretreatedtoTaiwan,whichitruledasaone-partystatefordecades,duringwhatwasoncetheworld’slongestperiodofmartiallaw.TheCCP,meanwhile,remainedinpowerinwhatwenowrefertoincommonparlanceas“China,”orofficiallythePeople’sRepublicofChina,orPRC. Foryears,theROCplannedtotakebackthemainlandfromitsnewbaseinTaiwan.Meanwhile,thePRCsworetoreclaimTaiwanasanintegralpartofitsterritory.Throughthe1950sandintothe1960s,thereweremilitaryskirmishesbetweenthetwo,particularlyaroundthesmallTaiwaneseislandsthatlieclosetothemainland.ButwhiletheROCeventuallygaveuponitsambitions,thePRCdidnot—hencethecurrentconflict.AsfarasBeijingisconcerned,TaiwanisaprovinceofChinathat’spretendingtobeindependentandneedstobebroughtbackintothefold. Atfirst,theROCinTaiwanwasrecognizedbyothernationsas,well,China.Thatbegantochangein1971,whenTaiwanwithdrewfromtheUnitedNations,andculminatedin1979,whentheU.S.switcheditsrecognitiontothePRCinmainlandChina.Today,onlyahandfulofsmallcountries—manyofthemintheCaribbeanandthePacific,butalsotheVatican—stillrecognizetheROC.Taiwanmaintainsrelationswiththesecountriessothattheycanspeakupforitininternationalorganizations. Bythecriteriaofrecognition,then,itisnotclearastowhetherenoughothercountriesrecognizeTaiwanthatitcanbeconsideredacountry.YetthereasonTaiwan’snotrecognizedasacountryisthatChinapressureseveryoneelsenotto.China,inthepresent,triestopoachdiplomaticalliesofTaiwan,withthelikelyaimofensuringthatnocountriesrecognizetheROCandnotthePRC.ThisalsoplaysastrategicroleforChina,inthatTaiwan’sfewremainingdiplomaticalliesoccupystrategiclocationsasPacificislandsorinAfrica,allowingChinatoexpanditsglobalreach. Recommendedforyou TheBattleThatSavedTaiwan Encounter:WendellWillkieRomancesMadameChiangKai-shek HowMaoZedongFormedCommunistChina US–TaiwanRelationS:ArmsSalesandMore TheU.S.isTaiwan’ssecurityguarantorfromthethreatofaChineseinvasion,inthatinthehypotheticaleventofaChineseinvasionofTaiwan,theUSmaycometoTaiwan’sdefense.Tothisend,theU.S.providesTaiwanwitharmstodefenditselfagainstapotentialChineseinvasion.ThesesalesareoftenusedasabarometerofthecurrentstateofU.S.-Taiwanrelations.Taiwandoeshaveindigenouslymanufacturedweaponssystems,suchasseveralmissilesystemsandtheIndigenousDefenseFighter,butthereareanumberofpartsthatTaiwancannotpurchaseonitsown. Likewise,thereisnoofficialagreementbetweentheU.S.andChinaaboutTaiwan’sstatus.UndertheOneChinaPolicy,theU.S.acknowledgesthatthereisoneChina,butdoesnothaveanysharedconsensuswithChinaonTaiwan’sstatus. ChinainsteadadherestotheOneChinaPrinciple,butitoftenseekstoconflateinternationalperceptionsoftheOneChinaPrincipleandOneChinaPolicyasbeingthesame.ThisisaimedatsuggestingthatthereisanagreementbetweentheU.S.andChinaonTaiwan’sstatus— whenthereisnosuchagreement. TheU.S.doesnothaveanyexplicitcommitmenttodefendTaiwanbutinsteadmaintainswhatisreferredtoasa“strategicallyambiguous”stanceonTaiwan.TheU.S.OneChinaPolicyisitselfastrategicallyambiguousone,inthattheU.S.hasanambiguousstanceonTaiwan’sunsettledgeopoliticalstatus. WhiletheU.S.isunderstoodasTaiwan’ssecurityguarantorfromChina,ithassometimesactedtopreventTaiwanfrompursuingdejureindependence.ThiswasillustratedintheAmericanviewofTaiwan’sformerpresidentChenShui-bianasapoliticalleaderwhowaswillingtothreatenregionalpeacebypursuingformalindependence.CurrentpresidentTsaiIng-wenmayhavewonthefaithoftheU.S.,asillustratedinthehigh-profilediplomaticvisittoTaiwanbyHouseSpeakerNancyPelosi,butbackduringTsai’s2012presidentialcampaign,theU.S.didn’tsupporther,becauseitthoughtshewouldbeapro-independenceprovocateurinthemoldofChen. Ourgovernment&militaryarecloselymonitoringChina'smilitaryexercises&informationwarfareoperations,readytorespondasnecessary.IcallontheinternationalcommunitytosupportdemocraticTaiwan&haltanyescalationoftheregionalsecuritysituation.pic.twitter.com/uAoDAU2bMV—蔡英文TsaiIng-wen(@iingwen)August5,2022 WhyIsTaiwanSoImportant? WhydoestheU.S.backTaiwantoday?Somereasonsareeconomic.Taiwanistheworld’s21st-largesteconomy,anditmanufactures92%oftheworld’sadvancedsemiconductors.Theworld’srelianceonTaiwanesesemiconductorsincentivizestheU.S.andotherwesternnationstodefendTaiwan,aswellasdiscouragesChinafromattackingit,becauseChinaisitselfalsodependentonTaiwanesesemiconductors.Somereports,deniedbytheTaiwanesegovernment,suggestthat,ironicallyenough,TaiwanesesemiconductorsareusedinthemissilesthatChinahaspointedatTaiwan. OtherreasonstheU.S.valuesTaiwangobacktoitsstrategiclocationintheAsiaPacific.KeyinternationalmaritimeshippingroutesandunderwatercablespassaroundTaiwan.Taiwanisthoughtofaspartofthe“FirstIslandChain,”whichChinawouldneedtoobtainifithopestoexpanditsinfluenceinthePacificOcean. Historicallyspeaking,U.S.supportforTaiwandatesbacktotheColdWar.TheROCcanbeconsideredoneoftheright-wingauthoritarianregimesproppedupbytheU.S.inordertocountertheSovietUnionorChina.However,TaiwaniscurrentlyruledbytheDemocraticProgressiveParty,whichemergedfromTaiwan’sdemocracymovementinthe1980sand1990s.Theformerauthoritarianparty,KMT,remainsanactiveplayerinTaiwanesepoliticsbycontinuingtofieldcandidatesforelections,evenifitisnolongertheonlygameintown. WhyDoesChinaWantTaiwan? AlthoughChinaseesTaiwanasanintegralpartofitsterritory,TaiwanwasactuallyonlyincorporatedintoChinaduringtheQingdynasty,whichlastedfrom1644to1911,andeventhentheQingdidn’tcontrolallofTaiwan.IndicationsarethattheQingdynastydidn’tconsiderTaiwanaparticularlyimportantpossession.Instead,Taiwanwasviewedasahinterlandoccupiedbystrangesavages. ThePRChasnevercontrolledTaiwan,eventhoughitsmodernbordersareprimarilythoseoftheQingempire.Itisforhistoricalreasons,however,thatChinaclaimsTaiwan,probablywiththeviewthatithasinheritedtheterritorialpossessionsoftheQing. ButwhiletheCCPnowemphasizesTaiwanasbeingapartofChina,MaoZedongsuggestedaslateas1972thattheCCPwaswillingtosetasidetheTaiwanquestionfor100yearsormore.YetstakingclaimsoverTaiwanmayhavetodowiththeCCP’sambitionstoexpandpoweroutwardintotheAsiaPacific,withTaiwanoccupyingasignificantgeostrategicpositionforprojectingmaritimepower. ItcanseemironicthatChinaisthegreatestthreattoTaiwan’sdefactoindependence,giventhedeepeconomicintegrationofTaiwanandChinaatthepresent.TheTaiwanesearemajorinvestorsandemployersonthemainland;Foxconn,theTaiwanese-ownedelectronicssupplier,hashadover1millionemployeesinChina.ThoughtheCCPhashistoricallybeenanenemyoftheKMT,atpresenttheKMThasbecomeknowninTaiwanesepoliticsasthepartypromotingunificationwithChina. TheKMTeventuallyaccommodateditselftothefactthatitwouldnotbeabletoretakeChinaandhasacceptedthatpoliticalunificationwithChinawouldhavetooccurundertheCCP’sauspices,nottheKMT’s.RightnowinTaiwan,fewmembersoftheoriginalgenerationoftheKMTthatcameovertoitfromChinaarestillalive,whiletheirchildren—thesecondgenerationaftertheKMTcameover—constituteitsleadership. ChinahopedtowinTaiwanoverthrougheconomicmeans,suggestingthatTaiwan’sfutureliesincloserlinkswithChinathatwouldleadittoprosperity.ManyinTaiwan,however,fearthatsuchtieswouldleadtoadeteriorationofpoliticalfreedoms,sothishasnotalwaysbeensuccessful.China,then,regularlyengagesinmilitaryintimidationofTaiwantodeteritfrompursuingindependence—themostrecentofwhichhavebeenlive-fireexercisesinresponsetothePelosivisit. SoIsTaiwanaCountry?Ifso,WhichTaiwan? AnotherquandaryforthequestionofTaiwan’snationalityisthatTaiwanisofficiallytheRepublicofChina.TheROCremainsboundtoChinaandthePRCbecausebothare“China.”ButbecauseofChinesepressure,Taiwanisforcedtoparticipateas“ChineseTaipei”ininternationalsportingeventsliketheOlympics.TaiwanisnotpartofmostUnitedNationsbodiesexceptasanobserver,ifatall,thankstoChinesepoliticalpressure,anditisnotamemberoftheWorldHealthOrganization. Yetsuchquestionsofnationalityarealsoincreasinglycontested.Isanationdefinedintermsofidentity?PollingshowsthatTaiwan’spopulationincreasinglyidentifiesasTaiwanese,whilethenumberofTaiwaneseidentifyingasChinese—orasbothChineseandTaiwanese—isonthedecline.Suchtrendsareparticularlyprominentamongyoungpeople. Thisalsoraisesthequestionastohowonedefinesanationintermsofitsethniccomposition.Taiwan’sfirstsettlers,inancienttimes,wereAustronesianpeoples;theirdescendantsmakeupamere2%ofthepopulationtoday.Meanwhile,TaiwansawafewhundredofyearsofHanChinesecolonization,beginninginthe17thand18thcenturies—theirdescendants,knownasbenshengren,makeup88%ofthepopulation.ThechildrenandgrandchildrenofthosewhoarrivedwiththeKMT—knownaswaishengren—makeuptheremaining10%.Amidallofthat,youhavetotakeintoaccountTaiwan’s50-yearrulebyJapan,whichseparatedtheislandfromthemainlandevenmoreandintroducednewculturalandpoliticalstructures.Giventhismixedhistory,itmaynotbesurprisingthatmanyTaiwanesedonotidentifyasChinesebuthaveadistinctsenseofculturalidentity. WhiletheinternationalworldusuallyunderstandsTaiwaneseindependenceasindependencefromthePRC,historicallyspeaking,theTaiwaneseindependencemovementvieweditspursuitasindependencefromtheROC.ThiswouldbefortheaimofrealizinganindependentTaiwanesenation-state,whichwouldtheoreticallybeindependentoftheROCandPRCalike,andinternationallyrecognized. Taiwan,then,occupiesarelativelyuniquepositiongloballyinthatitisafullydefactoindependentnation-statebutsimplynotrecognizedassuch.TheonlyotherexampleofthiskindofgeopoliticalstatusmaybeKosovo,whichisblockedfromwiderofficialrecognitionbyRussia,muchasisthecasewithTaiwanvis-a-visChina. WillAnythingChangeAnytimeSoon? Rightnow,everyoneseemstopreferthestatusquo.EventhoughChinadeniesanyTaiwaneseclaimstonationhoodandtheU.S.supportsTaiwanthroughshowsofsupportsuchasdiplomaticvisitsorweaponssales,neitherdoestheU.S.recognizeTaiwanasacountry—becauseChinahasthreatenedmilitaryreprisals. Taiwanesepollsalsoshowlowsupportforunification—buttheyalsodonotfavoranexplicitdeclarationofindependence.(See:fearsofChinesemilitaryreprisalsabove.)Forherpart,TsaiandherDemocraticProgressivePartyclaimthatTaiwanisalreadyanindependentnationunderthenameof“theRepublicofChina”andthatthereisnoneedtodeclareformalindependence. Fornow,thingsareunresolved—andseemtobestayingthatway.Thatmaynotbecomfortingamidthehigh-stakessaber-rattling.butitappearstobewhateveryonewants. historynetmagazines Our9best-sellinghistorytitlesfeaturein-depthstorytellingandiconicimagerytoengageandinformonthepeople,thewars,andtheeventsthatshapedAmericaandtheworld. subscribetoday Stories Portfolio:ImagesofWarasLandscape Whethertheyproducedbattlefieldimagesofthedeadordaguerreotypeportraitsofcommonsoldiers,[…] Stories JerrieMock:Record-BreakingAmericanFemalePilot In1964anOhiowomantookupthechallengethathadledtoAmeliaEarhart’sdisappearance. News WhoStoleThisIconicPortraitofWinstonChurchill? Since1998theoriginalprint,shotbyrenownedphotographerYousufKarsh,hashungonthehotelwallofFairmontChâteauLaurier.Thatis,untilrecently. Stories CryptoBrosTriedtoBuytheConstitution.Here’sWhyBillionaireKenGriffinStoppedThem. Thehedge-fundmagnatehasrevealedwhatdrovehimtoshellout$43.2millionforAmerica’scharterofgovernment.