The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday thanked the US House of Representatives for advancing the Taiwan International Solidarity Act in a rebuff to Beijing’s claims over the nation.
The bill, which aims to amend the 2019 Taiwan Allies International Protection and Enhancement Initiative (TAIPEI) Act, passed the House by a unanimous voice vote on Tuesday.
The legislation would require the US to support Taiwan’s bids to join international organizations as specified under the TAIPEI Act and oppose attempts by Beijing to “resolve Taiwan’s status by distorting the decisions, language, policies or procedures” of such organizations.
Photo: AFP
The bill states that UN Resolution 2758 — which recognized the People’s Republic of China as the sole legitimate government of China in 1971 — does not apply to Taiwan.
“The resolution did not address the issue of representation of Taiwan and its people in the United Nations or any related organizations, nor did the resolution take a position on the relationship between [China] and Taiwan or include any statement pertaining to Taiwan’s sovereignty,” it said.
“The United States opposes any initiative that seeks to change Taiwan’s status without the consent of the [Taiwanese] people,” the bill added.
Photo: CNA
The bill must still be approved by the US Senate, and then signed by US President Joe Biden before it can become law.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a news release that Taipei welcomed the US House’s advancement of a bill that could help counter China’s malign efforts to thwart Taiwan’s participation in international organizations.
Beijing over the past decades has repeatedly invoked Resolution 2758 as a means to prevent Taiwan from participating in and contributing to the international community in a distortion of the resolution’s purpose, which was concerned solely with China’s legal representation, it said.
The Chinese Communist Party’s “one China” principle is based on Beijing’s false interpretation of the resolution and the lies it made to the international community, the ministry added.
The ministry thanked the friends of Taiwan across the political divide in the US Congress, saying that Taiwan would continue its collaboration with the US and other like-minded countries in overcoming shared global challenges.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) said the bill was a clear signal to the international community that Resolution 2758 should not be applied to Taiwan.
Promoting this fact would allow the nation to create a legal foundation for Taiwan to achieve membership in international organizations and normal interactions with global political actors, he said.
The US House’s passage of the Taiwan International Solidarity Act shows that an unprecedented level of support for the nation’s bid to join the UN exists in Washington, DPP Legislator Chao Tien-lin (趙天麟) said.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Charles Chen (陳以信) said the bill’s importance should not be overplayed, as the Taiwan-US relationship continues to be largely governed by the same legal framework as before.
Although the importance of the bill is more symbolic than substantial, the KMT still welcomes and appreciates the US Congress’ expressions of goodwill, Chen said.
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