One-China policy

A diplomatic position that recognizes or acknowledges a single China while leaving governments’ claims to represent it, and the territory included, open to differing interpretations.

One-China principle: The position that there is one China, Taiwan is part of it, and the People’s Republic of China is its sole legitimate government. Beijing’s fixed formula is distinct from policies that acknowledge, rather than endorse, its claims.
Chinese Civil War: The conflict between the Chinese Communist Party and the Kuomintang that ended with rival governments on the mainland and Taiwan. Its outcome created the two governments whose competing claims underlie the policy.
Diplomatic recognition: A formal act by which a state accepts another entity as a state or government for diplomatic purposes. Recognition of Beijing, rather than Taipei, is a defining choice within many One-China policies.
Taiwan's diplomatic allies: The small group of states that maintain formal diplomatic relations with the Republic of China on Taiwan. Their number reflects sustained diplomatic competition over recognition.
Taiwan independence movement: A political movement supporting Taiwan’s formal independence or recognition as a sovereign state. It rejects the single-China framework that constrains many governments’ dealings with Taiwan.
1949 retreat to Taiwan: The Kuomintang government’s relocation to Taiwan after the Communist victory on mainland China in 1949. The retreat made the divided political reality central to later diplomatic choices.
De facto government: A governing authority that exercises effective control over territory, regardless of its legal or diplomatic recognition. Taiwan’s effective self-government can coexist with limited formal recognition.
Taiwan at the United Nations: The contested question of Taiwan’s participation and representation in the United Nations system. One-China positions affect whether Taiwan can join UN bodies under its own name.
Strategic ambiguity: A policy of deliberately leaving uncertain how a state would respond to a particular contingency. U.S. statements about Taiwan’s defense have often avoided a definite commitment while maintaining its China policy.
Shanghai Communiqué: The 1972 U.S.–China statement in which Washington acknowledged the Chinese position that there is one China and Taiwan is part of China. Its wording established a model for U.S. acknowledgment without accepting Beijing’s claim as its own.

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