Taiwan Relations Act

Taiwan Relations Act
Great Seal of the United States
Long title To help maintain peace, security, and stability in the Western Pacific and to promote the foreign policy of the United States by authorizing the continuation of commercial, cultural, and other relations between the people of the United States and the people on Taiwan, and for other purposes.
Acronyms (colloquial) TRA
Enacted by the 96th United States Congress
Citations
Public law Pub.L. 96–8
Statutes at Large 93 Stat. 14
Legislative history
  • Introduced in the House as "United States-Taiwan Relations Act" (H.R. 2479 by Clement J. Zablocki (D-WI) on February 28, 1979
  • Committee consideration by House Foreign Affairs
  • Passed the House on March 13, 1979 (345–55)
  • Passed the Senate on March 14, 1979 (90–6)
  • Reported by the joint conference committee on March 24, 1979; agreed to by the House on March 28, 1979 (339–50) and by the Senate on March 29, 1979 (85–4)
  • Signed into law by President Jimmy Carter on April 10, 1979

The Taiwan Relations Act (TRA; Pub.L. 96–8, 93 Stat. 14, enacted April 10, 1979; H.R. 2479) is an act of the United States Congress. Since the recognition of the People's Republic of China, the Act has defined the non-diplomatic relations between the people of the United States and the people on Taiwan.

Background

At The Third Plenum in 1978, Deng Xiaoping became the paramount leader of the People's Republic of China (PRC), definitively ending Maoist rule and beginning the reform era of Chinese history. During his speech at the plenum, he outlined a new Chinese foreign policy, whereby the Soviet Union—not the United States, as in the past—was identified as the main national security threat to China. During this time, China regarded itself as in a "united front" with the U.S., Japan, and western Europe against the Soviets.[1] Accordingly, China established relations with the United States, supported American operations in Communist Afghanistan, and leveled a punitive expedition against Vietnam, America's main antagonist in Southeast Asia. In exchange, the United States abrogated its mutual defense treaty with the Republic of China (ROC). So as to maintain good relations with the United States, the PRC offered new, more generous proposals to the Taipei government for Chinese reunification, introducing the one country, two systems concept which would allow Taiwan near-complete autonomy. However, the ROC government hardened its position with the Three Noes Policy and mobilized its ethnic lobby in the United States to agitate Congress for the swift passage of an American security guarantee for the island.[1]

The Act was passed by the United States Congress and signed by President Jimmy Carter in 1979 after the establishment of diplomatic relations with the PRC and the breaking of relations between the United States and Taiwan. Congress rejected the State Department's proposed draft and replaced it with language that has remained in effect since 1979. The Carter Administration signed[2] the Taiwan Relations Act to maintain commercial, cultural, and other relations through the unofficial relations in the form by a nonprofit corporation incorporated under the laws of the District of Columbia, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), without official government representation and without formal diplomatic relations.

Provisions

Definition of Taiwan

The act does not recognize the terminology of 'Republic of China' after 1 January 1979, but uses the terminology of "governing authorities on Taiwan". Geographically speaking and following the similar content in the earlier defense treaty from 1955, it defines the term "Taiwan" to include, as the context may require, the islands of Taiwan (the main Island) and Penghu.

Of the other islands or archipelagos under the control of Taiwan's governing authorities, Jinmen, the Matsus, the Wuqiu Islands, the Pratas and Taiping Island are left outside the definition of Taiwan. Also any area claimed by the authorities, but not under their control, is without mention.

De facto diplomatic relations

The act authorizes de facto diplomatic relations with the governing authorities by giving special powers to the AIT to the level that it is the de facto embassy, and states that any international agreements made between the ROC and U.S. before 1979 are still valid unless otherwise terminated. One agreement that was unilaterally terminated by President Jimmy Carter upon the establishment of relations with the PRC was the Sino-American Mutual Defense Treaty; that termination was the subject of the Supreme Court case Goldwater v. Carter.

The act provides for Taiwan to be treated under U.S. laws the same as "foreign countries, nations, states, governments, or similar entities". The act provides that for most practical purposes of the U.S. government, the absence of diplomatic relations and recognition will have no effect.[3]

Military provisions

The Taiwan Relations Act potentially requires the U.S. to intervene militarily if the PRC attacks or invades Taiwan. The act states that "the United States will make available to Taiwan such defense articles and defense services in such quantity as may be necessary to enable Taiwan to maintain a sufficient self-defense capabilities". However, the decision about the nature and quantity of defense services that America will provide to Taiwan is to be determined by the President and Congress. America's policy has been called "strategic ambiguity" and it is designed to dissuade Taiwan from a unilateral declaration of independence, and to dissuade the PRC from unilaterally unifying Taiwan with the PRC.

The act further stipulates that the United States will "consider any effort to determine the future of Taiwan by other than peaceful means, including by boycotts or embargoes, a threat to the peace and security of the Western Pacific area and of grave concern to the United States".

This act also requires the United States "to provide Taiwan with arms of a defensive character", and "to maintain the capacity of the United States to resist any resort to force or other forms of coercion that would jeopardize the security, or the social or economic system, of the people on Taiwan." Successive U.S. administrations have sold arms to Taiwan in compliance with the Taiwan Relations Act despite demands from the PRC that the U.S. follow the legally non-binding Three Joint Communiques and the U.S. government's proclaimed One-China policy (which differs from the PRC's One-China Principle).

Reactions

The passage of the Act severely damaged Sino-American relations in the eyes of the Chinese leadership, with Deng citing the Act in 1984 as the single most important reason why China discontinued its nascent pro-American foreign policy. From that time on, the PRC aligned itself with the Third World countries rather than with the United States or the Soviet Union, engaging itself in various movements such as nuclear non-proliferation that would allow it to critique the superpowers.[1] In the August 17th communique of 1982, the United States agreed to reduce arms sales to Taiwan. However, the United States declared that the United States would not formally recognize PRC's sovereignty over Taiwan as part of the Six Assurances offered to Taipei in 1982. In the late 1990s, the United States Congress passed a non-binding resolution stating that relations between Taiwan and the United States will be honored through the TRA first. This resolution, which puts greater weight on the TRA's value over that of the three communiques, was signed by President Bill Clinton as well. A July 2007 Congressional Research Service Report confirmed that U.S. policy has not recognized the PRC's sovereignty over Taiwan.[4] The PRC continues to view the Taiwan Relations Act as "an unwarranted intrusion by the United States into the internal affairs of China".[5] As of 2015 the United States continued supplying Taiwan with armaments and China continued to protest.[6]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Dittmer, Lowell (2001). "Reform and Chinese foreign policy". In Zhao, Jianmin; Dickson, Bruce. Remaking the Chinese State: Strategies, Society, and Security. Routledge. p. 179.
  2. ↑ http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=32177
  3. ↑ Taiwan Relations Act: Public Law 96-8 96th Congress Sec. 4 under APPLICATION OF LAWS; INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS
  4. ↑ CRS Report to Congress
  5. ↑ Embassy of the People's Republic of China: China opposes US congress' resolution on Taiwan (19/07/2004)
  6. ↑ The Editorial Board (December 24, 2015). "China’s Tantrum on Taiwan Arms Deal". The New York Times. Retrieved December 25, 2015. The new arms package, which includes two navy frigates, antitank missiles, combat systems for minesweepers, amphibious attack vehicles and communications systems....

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