THE People’s Republic of China last August 10, 2022, released another ‘White Paper,’ to re-state its position on the question of Taiwan and enlighten the global community on how it should view the situation that has been deliberately obscured and erroneously reported by the corporate Western media in support of Western/US Imperialism’s ulterior motive of justifying its war preparations against China and its return to imperialist subjugation and exploitation.
The issuance of the latest White Paper on the Taiwan Question by China was one of the repercussions of the provocative visit to the Chinese province of Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the US Congress, last August 2, 2022 (see also Pinoy Exposé, August 6, 2022).
The Chinese government noted that it has previously issued two White Papers on Taiwan, the first in August 1993 and the last, in February 2000.
“This new white paper is being released to reiterate the fact that Taiwan is part of China, to demonstrate the resolve of the CPC and the Chinese people and their commitment to national reunification, and to emphasize the position and policies of the CPC and the Chinese government in the new era,” said the latest document prepared by the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council and The State Council Information Office.
From the very start, China made it clear that regardless of Western propaganda, distortion and obfuscation of history, “Taiwan is part of China,” which the paper stressed, is the “indisputable fact.”
Historical basis
Chinese records show that Taiwan has been part of China dating back to the ‘Three Kingdom Period’ under the state of Wu (229 – 280 AD), aside from archeological evidence, historical documents and ‘annals’ (writings) showing the “profound historical and cultural ties” binding the Chinese on both sides of the Taiwan Straits.
It also noted that only after China’s defeat in the First Sino-Japanese War (1894 -1895) that China was forced to cede Taiwan to Japanese Imperialism until Japan’s defeat during World War 2. Japanese Imperialism would continue to grab huge chunks of Chinese territory beginning in 1937 that include Northeast China (Manchuria) and the Penghu Islands (Pescadores) located within the Taiwan Straits.
Along with the old government of China, the Koumintang headed by Chiang Kai Shek, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, agreed during their meeting in Cairo, Egypt, that Japan would have to return all Chinese territories once the war ended, namely, Taiwan, Manchuria and Penghu.
This is known as the Cairo Declaration of December 1, 1943. This agreement was affirmed by the Potsdam Declaration of July 26, 1945, where the Allied Powers aimed for the unconditional surrender of Japan. The most powerful of the Allies at the time, the Soviet Union, also recognized the terms of the Potsdam Declaration, including the paragraph, “The terms of the Cairo Declaration shall be carried out.”
Barely a month after Japan’s formal surrender, on October 25, 1945, at a ceremony in Taipei, Japan formally returned the sovereignty of Taiwan to China.
With the defeat of the KMT during the civil war that followed in China despite being backed by US Imperialism, “the Central People’s Government became the only legitimate government of the whole of China.
“The new government replaced the previous KMT regime in a situation where China, as a subject under international law, did not change and China’s sovereignty and inherent territory did not change.
“As a natural result, the government of the PRC should enjoy and exercise China’s full sovereignty, which includes its sovereignty over Taiwan,” the White Paper stressed.
The paper, however, noted that due to the “interference of external forces,” US Imperialism in particular, during the Chinese civil war, “the two sides of the Taiwan Straits have fallen into a state of protracted political confrontation.”
“But the sovereignty and territory of China have never been divided and will never be divided, and Taiwan’s status as part of China’s territory has never changed and will never be allowed to change,” the document stressed further.
The White Paper also noted that contrary to international agreements, “some elements in a small number of countries, the US foremost among them,” have colluded with separatist forces in Taiwan,” discard and devalue them to include UN General Assembly Resolution 2758, adopted by the UNGA during its 26th session in October 1971.
The resolution resolved to “restore all its rights to the People’s Republic of China and to recognize the representatives of its 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 and in all the organizations related to it.”
“This resolution settled once and for all the political, legal and procedural issues of China’s representation in the UN, and it covered the whole country, including Taiwan. It also spelled out that China has one single seat in the UN, so there is no such thing as ‘two Chinas’ or ‘one China, one Taiwan.’
“The one-China principle represents the universal consensus of the international community; it is consistent with the basic norms of international relations. To date, 181 countries including the United States have established diplomatic relations with the PRC on the basis of the one-China principle.”
“We are one China, and Taiwan is part of China,” the White Paper continued.
“This is an indisputable fact supported by history and the law. Taiwan has never been a state; its status as part of China is unalterable. Any attempt to distort these facts and dispute or deny the one-China principle will end in failure.”
Peaceful reunification but…
After elaborating on the positive developments on both sides of the Taiwan Straits mainly in the field of trade and commerce, the White Paper emphasized that following the policy laid down by Chairman Deng Xiao Ping in 1978 for a “peaceful reunification… on the basis of consensus,” this has been adopted by subsequent CPC leadership down to Pres. Xi Jin Ping under the ‘One Country, Two Systems’ principle.
But under Taiwan’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), China noted that Taiwanese leaders have “adopted a separatist stance, and colluded with external forces (US/Western Imperialism) in successive provocative actions designed to divide the country.”
On this point, China did not hesitate to name US Imperialism as the “external force” behind the DPP’s effort to separate Taiwan from the mainland.
“The US authorities have stated that they remain committed to the one-China policy and that they do not support ‘Taiwan independence.’ But their actions contradict their words.
“They are clouding the one-China principle in uncertainty and compromising its integrity…they incite separatist forces to create tension and turmoil in cross-Straits relations.
“On the other hand, they accuse the mainland of coercion, pressurizing Taiwan, and unilaterally changing the status quo, in order to embolden these forces and create obstacles to China’s peaceful reunification.”
Reminding Washington of what China is willing to do, the White Paper noted that despite being a backward country during the Korean War (1950-1953), China won a “resounding victory” against the military might of US Imperialism based solely on the “heroic spirit, our lack of fear, and our will to stand up against the abuse of the powerful.”
“China is firmly committed to peaceful development. At the same time, it will not flinch under any external interference, nor will it tolerate any infringement upon its sovereignty, security and development interests.
“Relying on external forces will achieve nothing for Taiwan’s separatists, and using Taiwan to contain China is doomed to fail,” it added.
“Separatism will plunge Taiwan into the abyss and bring nothing but disaster to the island,” rthe document warned further.
“We will work with the greatest sincerity and exert our utmost efforts to achieve peaceful reunification. But we will not renounce the use of force, and we reserve the option of taking all necessary measures. This is to guard against external interference and all separatist activities…
“Use of force would be the last resort taken under compelling circumstances. We will only be forced to take drastic measures to respond to the provocation of separatist elements or external forces should they ever cross our red lines,” the White Paper stressed.