The report by the German Marshall Fund of the United States detailed an effort on the part of Beijing to use a rhetorical sleight of hand to twist the meaning of the resolution to incorporate its “One China” principle—the CCP position that Taiwan is part of the PRC—and thereby gain leverage and exert pressure over other powers on the Taiwan issue.
The authors of the report viewed this action as the latest ploy in a long-running attempt to spin perceptions of Taiwan both within and outside the U.N. and to yoke Taiwan to the CCP’s machinery of power.
The Historical Background
The text of Resolution 2758 codifies U.N. members’ decision “to recognize the representatives of [the PRC’s] 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.”The report emphasized that no objective reading of Resolution 2758 could construe it as allocating Taiwan to the PRC. The resolution simply provides that, within a context of the Republic of China (Taiwan) vacating its seat at the U.N., the PRC will take the seat formerly occupied by “China.” It does not state any position on Taiwan’s sovereignty. Member status of the U.N. never meant to give the PRC control over Taiwan when they passed this resolution, the report argued.
“In passing the resolution in 1971, the countries solely intended to grant the seat occupied by the Republic of China in the General Assembly and the Security Council to the PRC. This is reflected in the official historic record and meeting minutes as well as in the resolutions raised at the time for the General Assembly’s consideration,” the report stated.
Then-Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai fully understood that the resolution did not concede Taiwan to Beijing. The report quoted his acknowledgment that if the resolution should pass, “the status of Taiwan is not yet decided.”
Possessing less influence in world affairs than it does today, the communist regime in 1971 acceded to the passage of the resolution in order to take the China seat at the U.N. and held off on trying to advance their agenda with regard to Taiwan, the report recounted. As Taiwan undertook democratization in the 1990s and early 2000s, Beijing grew markedly more aggressive in pushing its demands concerning Taiwan.
Isolating Taiwan
Besides promoting its revisionist interpretation of Resolution 2758, the communist regime has used heavy-handed means to give PRC representatives influence on and oversight of U.N. functions that affect Taiwan and has attempted, the report said, to “force its views” about Taiwan on other U.N. members.The Chinese regime sometimes does not allow other members to be privy to agreements it enters into with prominent international organizations. For example, the U.N. has not made the contents of a 2005 memorandum of understanding between the PRC and the World Health Organization available to anyone besides the primary signatories of the agreement. The report acknowledged, however, that leaked guidance memos have afforded some knowledge of the contents. As a result of Beijing’s influence, Taiwan has not been able to take part in debates and discussions about public health even in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The report described Taiwan as a society that has made rapid progress from the authoritarian rule of Chiang Kai-Shek to full-blown democracy with “a robust civil society” and technological savvy giving it a crucial role in worldwide supply chains. None of this has persuaded Beijing to recognize Taiwan’s sovereignty.
“Despite these accomplishments, Taiwan officials and representatives of its NGOs are often excluded from attending and participating in discussions on … pressing topics in international fora, including those led by the U.N. and its affiliated organizations,” the report stated.
Beijing’s efforts also have consequences for Taiwanese citizens who seek access to U.N. buildings. The report cited the example of a Taiwanese professor, Liuhuang Li-chuan, and her students, whom staff turned away from the public gallery of the U.N. human rights office in Geneva in June 2017 on the grounds that their international student identification cards were invalid and they had to have PRC-issued official identification to gain entry. In October 2018, a journalist holding both a Taiwanese passport and a mainland travel permit for Taiwan residents could not gain entry to a U.N. headquarters building.
Another tactic is for the Chinese regime to impose its wishes concerning terminology that people use when discussing the Taiwan issue. Beijing has denied U.N. accreditation to NGOs and civil society organizations that fail to adopt CCP’s preferred nomenclature, in which Taiwan is understood to be part of the PRC, and to use such nomenclature in their websites and official publications. CCP representatives have even gone so far as to alter existing U.N. documents to change “Taiwan” to “Taiwan, Province of China.”
Suggested Responses
The report advocated decisive action on the part of the United States and other countries that take issue with Beijing’s attempts to island Taiwan from participation in international bodies. It proposed a “major diplomatic effort” to develop a coalition of powers willing to contravene the CCP’s reading of Resolution 2758 and co-author a letter to the U.N. secretary-general conveying their disapproval of Beijing’s distortion of the resolution.Further steps suggested include a strong push by the United States and allies to counter the appointment of Chinese nationals to top positions at U.N. agencies that they might use to advance Beijing’s agenda on Taiwan, requesting that the U.N. demand the publication of the full text of MOUs and other agreements between the PRC and U.N. bodies, and being clear that the U.S. and allies understand what China means by its “One China Principle” but that they themselves do not accept Beijing claims regarding Taiwan.
