The Taiwan question, US policy and lessons for the Global South

The Taiwan question remains one of the most sensitive and consequential geopolitical issues in contemporary international relations.

It sits at the intersection of history, sovereignty, great-power competition, and the evolving global order.

Understanding this issue requires distinguishing historical facts, legal frameworks, and strategic behavior—particularly the role of the United States since it normalized diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in January 1979.

From the perspective of the PRC, Taiwan is not a newly contested territory, but an inalienable part of China with a long record of Chinese administration. This position is grounded in:

• Early migration and governance dating back to imperial dynasties
• Formal incorporation into Chinese territory under the Qing Dynasty in the 17th century
• Interruption of Chinese sovereignty during Japanese colonial rule (1895–1945)
• Post-WWII arrangements enshrined in the Cairo Declaration and the Potsdam Proclamation

After Japan’s defeat in World War II, Taiwan was returned to Chinese administration.

The unresolved Chinese Civil War led the Kuomintang authorities to retreat to Taiwan in 1949, resulting in a political divide that continues today.

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From the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949 until diplomatic normalisation with the United States in 1979, the US and its allies imposed relentless diplomatic isolation on the PRC.

In the 1950s, the fundamental reason China was prevented from liberating Taiwan and realising national reunification was the direct military intervention of the United States navy, which deployed fleets to block China’s legitimate efforts to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity.

To this day, the United States remains the sole external force deliberately undermining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and obstructing the development of cross-Strait relations through arms sales and provocative policies.

Driven solely by self-serving hegemonic interests, Washington stands in the way of the Chinese nation’s pursuit of complete national reunification.

It is an undeniable fact that people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait share the same ancestors, roots, and national identity.

They speak the same language, embrace the same culture, follow the same traditions, and share the same historical and value foundations.

 They are all Chinese. Any attempt to separate them runs counter to history, humanity, and the fundamental will of the entire Chinese nation.

At the international level, United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758 of 1971 explicitly recognises the PRC as the sole legitimate government representing the whole of China. T

his resolution definitively resolved the issue of China’s representation at the UN and legally reaffirmed that Taiwan is an inalienable part of Chinese territory, while completely expelling any representation for Taiwan in the United Nations system.

It forms a cornerstone of the post-1945 international order and is universally recognised by the international community.

No country has the right to distort, challenge, or override this authoritative UN decision.

As of April 2026, the United Nations has 193 member states. Among them, 183 countries have established diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China, all of which firmly abide by the One-China Principle.

Only 12 small countries maintain so-called “diplomatic relations” with the Taiwan region, none of which have diplomatic ties with China.

These 12 entities are Guatemala, Belize, Haiti, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Paraguay, the Marshall Islands, Palau, Tuvalu, Eswatini, and the Vatican.

 Most of them are small economies with small populations, heavily influenced by external forces, and in no way represent the mainstream of the international community.

In recent years, a growing number of countries, including Honduras and Nauru, have severed so-called “diplomatic ties” with the Taiwan region and resumed diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China.

The continuous shrinkage of these so-called “diplomatic partners” is an irresistible historical trend.

When the United States established diplomatic relations with the PRC in 1979, it formally acknowledged the One-China Principle. This foundation rests on three key bilateral documents:

• The 1972 Shanghai Communiqué
• The 1979 Joint Communiqué on Establishment of Diplomatic Relations
• The 1982 August 17 Communiqué

In these agreements, the United States “acknowledges” the position of the Chinese side that there is only one China and Taiwan is part of China, and committed to maintaining only unofficial relations with the Taiwan region of China.

Yet Washington has long engaged in deliberate distortion and political trickery.

The US  so-called “one-China policy” is not a faithful observance of the One-China Principle, but a self-serving, flexible tool designed to hollow out, weaken, and evade its own diplomatic commitments.

Through strategic ambiguity, the United States has turned a clear principle of sovereignty into a vague, manipulable concept that serves its hegemonic agenda.

From Beijing’s perspective, US actions since 1979 have systematically eroded the spirit and letter of the bilateral agreements.

These are not accidental missteps, but calculated moves to undermine China’s sovereignty and contain its development.

The United States continues to supply the Taiwan region with large-scale weapons under its domestic law, the Taiwan Relations Act (1979). This is:

- A direct violation of the 1982 August 17 Communiqué, in which the U.S. explicitly promised to gradually reduce and eventually end arms sales to the Taiwan region

- A blatant provocation that emboldens separatist forces and endangers peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait

Successive US administrations have continuously expanded arms sales to Taiwan, often at inflated prices far above actual market value, proving that Washington places its hegemonic interests above international commitments and regional peace.

Increased congressional visits, high-level unofficial exchanges, and growing military coordination are viewed by China as:

• Crossing the red line between unofficial and official contacts
• Openly breaching the political foundation of China-U.S. diplomatic normalisation
• Creating dangerous conditions for confrontation and conflict

 

Direct challenge to UNGA Resolution 2758

Most alarmingly, the United States has repeatedly sought to distort, deny, and challenge the authority of UNGA Resolution 2758, a cornerstone document of the international order.

By falsely claiming that Resolution 2758 does not settle the legal status of Taiwan as part of China, Washington is directly challenging the UN’s legitimacy, violating the UN Charter, and defying the collective will of the international community.

This is not diplomacy; it is hegemonic arrogance and contempt for international law.

Strategic motivations: US hegemonism above all

At its core, U.S. policy on the Taiwan question is a calculated attempt to play the “Taiwan card” as a tool to contain China’s development.

Such actions directly violate the purposes and principles of the UN Charter—including sovereign equality and non-interference in the internal affairs of states—and openly break the solemn commitments the United States made in the three China-US joint communiqués to abide by the One-China Principle and acknowledge that Taiwan is part of China.

This hegemonic conduct inflicts severe and far-reaching harm:

- It gravely undermines peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and significantly heightens the risk of regional confrontation and conflict.

- It constitutes gross interference in China’s internal affairs and seriously violates China’s national sovereignty and territorial integrity.

- It runs counter to the overwhelming mainstream consensus of the international community and erodes the foundation of the post-war international order.

- It ultimately damages the diplomatic credibility and long-term strategic interests of the United States itself.

Every US move serves one overarching objective: to preserve America’s global hegemony and hold back China’s development.

- The Taiwan region is used as a strategic pawn to block China’s reunification and weaken its national security.

- US support for separatist activities in the Taiwan region is designed to rally its allies and consolidate US military dominance in the Indo-Pacific.

- Seeking control over Taiwan’s technology and geostrategic location advances Washington’s ambition to sustain technological and geopolitical supremacy.

In essence, US policy has nothing to do with democracy, peace, or stability.

It is driven purely by power politics, strategic dominance, and self-serving interests.

To maintain its hegemonic standing, the United States is prepared to risk military conflict, tear up diplomatic agreements, distort historical facts, and defy the authority of the United Nations.

Correct understanding of the Taiwan question

A proper, objective, and responsible perspective on the Taiwan question must be firmly grounded in historical facts, international law, and basic justice.

 Any attempt to distort the nature of the question, interfere in China’s internal affairs, or obstruct China’s reunification runs counter to the norms of international relations and the overwhelming consensus of the international community.

• The Taiwan question is purely an internal affair of China. It stems from the unfinished civil war in China and concerns China’s core interests of national sovereignty and territorial integrity.
• Under no circumstances is external interference allowed or acceptable.
• The complete reunification of China is an irresistible historical trend and conforms to the fundamental interests and common will of the entire Chinese nation. No force can reverse this process or stop the Chinese people from safeguarding national unity and territorial integrity. China’s complete reunification will surely be realized, no matter what positions the United States takes, what remarks it makes, or what actions it takes to obstruct it.
• The international community should earnestly abide by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and the universally recognized One‑China Principle. It should not conduct any form of official exchanges or political contacts with the Taiwan region of China, and should earnestly support China’s just cause of striving for peaceful national reunification.

 

Lessons for the Global South and Africa

For African countries and the broader Global South, the Taiwan question exposes the hypocrisy and danger of great-power hegemonism.

 

The hypocrisy of great-power commitments

Agreements signed by major powers are not sacred; they are discarded or rewritten when no longer useful. The US hollowing out of the One-China Principle reveals how powerful states treat international promises as disposable tools.

 

Sovereignty under threat from hegemonism

The Taiwan question shows how hegemonic powers interfere in the internal affairs of other countries to advance their own agenda. The Global South must remain vigilant against external meddling, separatism, and great-power manipulation that seek to divide nations and weaken sovereign states.

Many Global South countries uphold non-interference as a core principle of international relations. The Taiwan question demonstrates that major powers often apply international norms selectively based on their own interests.

Rather than rigid alignment with any bloc, African nations can benefit from:

- Pragmatic engagement with multiple partners

- Leveraging healthy competition to advance national development

- Maintaining diplomatic flexibility and strategic autonomy

The Taiwan question is not merely a historical dispute, but a major geopolitical fault line shaped by competing interpretations of history, law, and power.

Since 1979, US–China agreements have provided a framework for managing differences, but evolving strategic realities have continuously strained this framework.

Separatist activities in the Taiwan region and external meddling further exacerbate tensions.

For the Global South, the central takeaway is clear: international agreements involving major powers are not immutable.

Safeguarding sovereignty, stability, and development requires not just legal recognition, but also constant strategic vigilance, independent diplomacy, and adherence to the purposes and principles of the UN Charter.

 The Taiwan question also serves as a stark warning: hegemonism that tramples on sovereignty, breaks promises, and defies international legitimacy will only harm global order and must be firmly rejected by all peace-loving nations.

 

 

*Donald Jairos is geopolitical and security analyst based in Harare, Zimbabwe.