Several United States congressmen have criticized Beijing for interpreting a United Nations resolution adopted in 1971 to support excluding Taiwan from taking part in the U.N. system.
“The People’s Republic of China (PRC) has sought to intentionally misuse, misinterpret and mislead others on the underlying purpose of U.N. Resolution 2758,” said Bob Menendez, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and James Inhofe, a ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, in a joint statement.
China has misrepresented the U.N. decision to undermine Taiwan’s standing and participation in the international community, according to the statement issued Monday, which marked the 50th anniversary of the passage of the resolution.
The anniversary should “serve as a turning point to correct the continued injustice of Taiwan’s marginalization on the world stage,” the senators said, adding that “Beijing should not be allowed to continue twisting history and isolating Taipei.”
The resolution, adopted in 1971, decided “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.”
The Republic of China, as Taiwan is officially known, has not been a U.N. member since the resolution was approved in 1971, but Taiwan’s government has over the years campaigned for the island’s participation in U.N. mechanisms as well as in U.N. agencies such as the World Health Organization.
With cross-Taiwan Strait relations becoming increasingly strained, however, Beijing has ramped up its pressure on the U.N. and its affiliates to prevent Taiwan’s participation, often citing Resolution 2758.
Chinese officials maintain the issue of Taiwan’s participation in the U.N. and its affiliates should be handled in accordance with the “one-China” principle, which is a guiding principle established by Resolution 2758.
Under the one-China principle, Taiwan is an inalienable part of China.
Representative Michael McCaul, a ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, rejected Beijing’s rhetoric, describing it as “false claims” that should be rooted out from the U.N.
McCaul said in a statement: “Resolution 2758 does not say Taiwan is a part of China. It does not say China may represent Taiwan before the U.N. It does not address Taiwan’s sovereignty — it doesn’t even include the word Taiwan.”
Representatives Ami Bera and Steve Chabot echoed their colleague’s view in a joint statement Monday.
Beijing’s attempts to impose the PRC’s “one-China” principle on the U.N. system and other U.N. member states have denied the global community the full benefit of Taiwan’s knowledge and resources, the representatives said.
“We oppose any ahistorical reinterpretations of UNGA Resolution 2758 that isolate Taiwan or impose Beijing’s views on other countries,” they said.
The comments by the senators and representatives came less than a week after an American official from the Department of State denounced Beijing’s interpretation of the resolution.
“The People’s Republic of China has misused Resolution 2758 to prevent Taiwan’s meaningful participation” in the U.N., said Rick Waters, deputy assistant secretary of state at the Bureau of East Asia and Pacific Affairs, during a virtual talk held in Washington last Thursday.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel