Australian Senate Passes Motion Rejecting China’s Distortion of UNGA Resolution 2758
On August 21, the Australian Senate unanimously passed an “urgency motion” supporting Taiwan’s participation in international organizations and rejecting China’s misinterpretation of U.N. General Assembly Resolution 2758 to falsely claim Taiwan as part of its territory.
The Australian Senate agreed by vote to move the motion: “That United Nations Resolution 2758 of 25th October 1971 does not establish the People’s Republic of China’s [PRC] sovereignty over Taiwan and does not determine the future status of Taiwan in the United Nations, nor Taiwanese participation in U.N. agencies or international organisations.”
The motion was co-sponsored by Australian Senators David Fawcett and Deborah O’Neill, both of whom visited Taiwan last month to attend the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China’s (IPAC) annual conference.
Addressing Parliament House in Canberra, Fawcett said the motion was “urgent” because of the “growing risk to the security and stability in the Indo-Pacific.”
O’Neill followed Fawcett’s remarks by saying that “the [U.N.] resolution does not mention Taiwan or address its political status.”
“Despite this fact, there is an ongoing and egregious campaign currently underway from the PRC to reinterpret the resolution and misrepresent what the resolution actually does,” she said, referring to China’s attempts to minimize Taiwan’s participation in the international community.
“The Chinese Communist Party has no business in destroying democracy in Taiwan,” Australian Senator Jacqui Lambie said. “Australia must stand up against the Chinese Communist Party [CCP] and back the more than 22 million people of Taiwan who choose democracy and freedom over the authoritarianism of the Chinese Communist Party,” she added.
Australian Senator Pauline Hanson voiced her view that Australia and the rest of the world “should recognise Taiwan for the independent sovereign nation it has effectively been since the 1950s.”
Finally, Australian Senator Linda Reynolds said Beijing had been “gaslighting” Taiwan and warned that China had formed an “axis of dictatorship and authoritarianism” with Russia, Iran and North Korea.
On August 22, Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) welcomed the Australian Senate’s pro-Taiwan motion, describing it as “just.”
“We also call on the international community to jointly counter China’s misinterpretation of U.N. General Assembly Resolution 2758 and China’s attempts to make false connections between the resolution and the so-called ‘One China’ principle,” MOFA added.
References:
[1] Focus Taiwan
[2] Taipei Times
[3] OpenAustralia
Taiwan Should Be Full Member of United Nations: Nikki Haley
On August 21, the former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations (U.N.), Nikki Haley, called for Taiwan’s full membership in the U.N., more international backing for Taiwan, and a coordinated pushback against China’s false claims over the self-ruled democratic country.
In her keynote address at the Ketagalan Forum held in Taipei, Haley, who served as the U.S.’ top envoy to the U.N. from January 2017 to December 2018, said she was visiting Taiwan for the first time but has “proudly stood with Taiwan for years.”
Praising Taiwan as a “place of courage, confidence, and unwavering resolve,” Haley called on free countries to “stand strong with Taiwan — now more than ever.”
Haley said that after she arrived at the U.N., she learned that Taiwanese passport holders “aren’t even allowed in the [U.N. Headquarters] building,” “because China has convinced the world that 24 million people in Taiwan effectively do not exist.”
“The United States should elevate Taiwan on the world stage. You [Taiwan] should no longer be silenced in global affairs. Given the strength of your freedom and democracy, you should be empowered to speak,” Haley told the audience at the conference.
“Taiwan should be a full member in the United Nations. You have every right to sit at the same table with the world’s countries,” she added.
In 1971, the U.N. General Assembly adopted Resolution 2758, recognizing the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) right to represent China in the U.N. system. Since then, the PRC has deliberately mischaracterized the UNGA Resolution 2758 to support its fabricated claims over Taiwan, even though the resolution made no mention of Taiwan.
Haley said China will naturally threaten war if the U.S. and other countries support Taiwan, but that was exactly why democracies should move faster.
To serve as a stronger deterrence, the U.S. and its European and Asian allies have to “immediately begun rebuilding our militaries.”
“We should stand with Taiwan today — not wait until China invades. If we take the necessary steps now, China will think twice about starting a war,” she said.
References:
[1] Focus Taiwan
[2] Taipei Times
Democrats Include U.S.’ “Six Assurances” in Policy Platform for First Time
On August 19, the Democratic National Convention in Chicago approved the party’s 92-page policy platform, including an unprecedented commitment to the U.S.’ “Six Assurances” to Taiwan.
The policy document reaffirmed the Democrats’ firm commitment to safeguarding peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, its opposition to unilateral changes to the cross-strait status quo, and its adherence to the U.S.’ “One China policy.”
“President Biden will also remain steadfast in America’s commitment to peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait consistent with the U.S. One China policy — guided by the Taiwan Relations Act, the three Joint Communiques, and the Six Assurances — in order to continue to ensure that there are no unilateral changes to the status quo from either side,” the 2024 Democratic Party Platform said.
The Democrats conspicuously omitted any reference to Washington’s “One China policy” in its 2020 party platform, mentioning only the Taiwan Relations Act.
The “Six Assurances” given to Taiwan in 1982 by the late former U.S. President Ronald Reagan are:
(1) The U.S. has not agreed to set a date for ending arms sales to Taiwan.
(2) The has not agreed to consult with the PRC [People’s Republic of China] on arms sales to Taiwan.
(3) The U.S. will not play any mediation role between Taipei and Beijing.
(4) The U.S. has not agreed to revise the Taiwan Relations Act.
(5) The U.S. has not altered its position regarding sovereignty over Taiwan.
(6) The U.S. will not exert pressure on Taiwan to enter negotiations with the PRC.
Although the Republican Party first included the “Six Assurances” in its 2016 platform and again in 2020, there was no mention of Taiwan in this year’s Republican Party Platform.
In Taipei, Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs on August 19 expressed gratitude for the approval of the Democratic Party’s 2024 platform, saying this highlighted the importance the party attaches to peace across the Taiwan Strait and that the importance of maintaining cross-Taiwan Strait peace has become an international consensus in recent years.