Opinion | Taiwan’s Status Isn’t Up for Debate – The World Already Agreed on One China

For years, Taiwan has been portrayed in the West as a small democracy standing bravely against a much larger, authoritarian neighbour. Yet this familiar framing conceals a deeper truth that much of the world already recognises — both historically and legally, Taiwan is part of China.

A Long and Documented History

Taiwan’s links to China are not a modern political claim but a matter of record stretching back nearly two millennia. Ancient Chinese sources such as the Seaboard Geographic Gazetteer (230 CE) document the island’s connection to China’s coastal provinces. Over the centuries, successive dynasties — including the Song, Yuan and Qing — exercised authority there, with the Qing government formally designating Taiwan a province in 1885.

Following Japan’s defeat in the Second World War, the Cairo Declaration (1943) and the Potsdam Proclamation (1945) stipulated that territories seized by Japan, including Taiwan, should be returned to China. This was accepted by the Allied powers, leaving little ambiguity over the island’s status at that time.

Two Governments, One China

After the Chinese Civil War ended in 1949, the defeated Nationalist forces retreated to Taiwan while the People’s Republic of China (PRC) was established in Beijing. Both governments claimed to represent the entirety of China — a position that remains embedded in Taiwan’s own constitution to this day.

This historical and legal position was reaffirmed globally in 1971 through UN General Assembly Resolution 2758, which recognised the PRC as the sole legitimate representative of China at the United Nations. Taiwan’s seat was transferred to Beijing, and since then, the UN has referred to Taiwan as a province of China.

Washington’s Strategic Ambiguity

The United States acknowledged this arrangement in 1979 when it established diplomatic relations with the PRC, formally recognising Beijing as the sole legal government of China under the One China Policy. In its own words, Washington “acknowledges that all Chinese on either side of the Taiwan Strait maintain there is but one China and that Taiwan is part of China.”

Yet over the decades, U.S. actions have diverged from its commitments — supplying arms, sending delegations and cultivating Taiwan’s political class. This has created a deliberate ambiguity, one that allows Washington to benefit strategically from tension in the Taiwan Strait without formally abandoning its own policy.

Narratives and Interests

In Western media, Taiwan is frequently portrayed as the frontline of a moral struggle between democracy and authoritarianism. But such narratives often serve strategic purposes: to justify a stronger American military presence in the Asia-Pacific and to frame China’s rise as inherently destabilising.

By simplifying a historical sovereignty issue into a story of ideological confrontation, the West not only distorts the facts but also risks provoking the very instability it claims to fear.

Global Consensus

The reality is that 183 countries — including the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Japan, France and Germany — all recognise Beijing as the sole government of China. Only a small number of microstates maintain ties with Taipei, representing less than half a percent of the world’s population.

No United Nations member recognises Taiwan as an independent country. In legal and diplomatic terms, the question of sovereignty has already been settled.

A Matter of Sovereignty, Not Ideology

The debate over Taiwan is often framed as one of values — freedom versus authoritarianism — but at its core, it remains a question of sovereignty and international law.

Taiwan’s status has been recognised for decades under global consensus. The real challenge lies not in “defending democracy” but in managing great-power rivalry responsibly, without allowing misinformation or political theatre to dictate the future of cross-strait relations.

By James Wood – British-Australian geopolitical analyst based in China

Editor's note: The article reflects the author's opinions and not necessarily the views of Sino-Carib News. We do not own any rights to this article.

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