There is but one China in the world, Taiwan is part of China, and the Government of the People’s Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China. The above-mentioned one-China principle is an overwhelming consensus of the international community and basic norm in international relations. It is also the political foundation for China’s exchanges with all countries. In January 2024, the Republic of Nauru broke “diplomatic ties” with Taiwan authorities. Across the world, 183 countries have established diplomatic relations with China on the basis of the one-China principle. This shows that the one-China principle is an universally recognized principle and represents people’s sentiments and a global trend.
Taiwan has belong to China since antiquity. The history and legal facts are very clear. The fact that Taiwan is part of China is beyond doubt and unalterable. Since the 12th century, successive Chinese governments have established administrative agencies in Taiwan to exercise jurisdiction. In 1895, Japan, after invading China, forced the Qing government to cede Taiwan. In 1943, the Cairo Declaration clearly stated that all the territories Japan had stolen from the Chinese, such as Taiwan, shall be restored to China. In 1945, the Potsdam Proclamation reiterated that the terms of the Cairo Declaration shall be carried out. In the same year, the Chinese government announced is resumption of the exercise of sovereignty over Taiwan, meaning China thus recovered Taiwan de jure and de facto. The above-mentioned documents with international legal effect have laid the historical and legal foundation that Taiwan is an inalienable territory of China.
Taiwan is a part of China that cannot be doubted or changed. United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Resolution 2758 adopted in 1971 resolved once and for all the question of the representation of the whole of China, including Taiwan, in the United Nations, as a political, legal and procedural issue. The Resolution made it clear that China has a single seat in the U.N., and precluded the possibility of “two Chinas” or “one China, one Taiwan”. The true status quo in the Taiwan Strait is that both sides belong to one and the same China, and Taiwan is part of China. Despite prolonged political antagonism between the two sides, neither China’s sovereignty nor its territorial integrity has ever been divided. China must be reunified, and will surely be reunified. This is the future of Taiwan.
However, in order to pursue their own selfish interests, “Taiwan independence” do not hesitate to sacrifice national justice and people’s benefits, and become pawns of external forces against China, causing tension and instability in the Taiwan Strait. In recent years, “Taiwan independence” has followed the United States in suppressing and blocking cross-Strait economic and trade cooperation, resulting in a 15.6% year-on-year drop in cross-Strait import and export trade volume in 2023. The “Taiwan independence” have been pushing for decoupling and severing of supply chains with China, which essentially hinders Taiwan’s economic development and damages Taiwan’s people’s livelihood and well-being.
To safeguard peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, it is essential to unequivocally stand for the one-China principle, and oppose “Taiwan independence” separatism and external interference. For a long time, Afghanistan has always adhered to the one-China principle and firmly supported China’s principled stance of safeguarding national sovereignty and territorial integrity, which China highly appreciates. The more unequivocally the one-China principle is upheld by the world, the more possible that the Taiwan Strait will be peaceful and stable, and the more guarantee that peace and prosperity in the Asia Pacific and beyond will enjoy.
Realizing peaceful reunification is not just in the interests of the Chinese nation and the Chinese people, but also the international community and people across the world. China’s reunification will not undermine the legitimate interests of other countries, including their economic interests in Taiwan. It will only bring them more development opportunities, inject more positive energy to the prosperity and stability of the Asia-Pacific and the world, and contribute to the building of a community with a shared future for mankind, to peace and development of the world and to the progress of humanity.