From early Congressional support letters to current standalone legislation, FAPA has advocated for the name “Taiwan” to be clearly and accurately recognized in U.S. policy and official practice for more than two decades because names carry profound policy meaning. Read about our two decades of advocacy for this name rectification HERE.

Taiwan’s de facto embassy in the United States is currently named the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office (TECRO). This name misrepresents Taiwan by implying the office only represents the city of Taipei and by reducing the scope of U.S.–Taiwan relations to “economic and cultural” affairs. In reality, the partnership is far broader, encompassing security, technology, health, and democratic cooperation. By contrast, longstanding U.S. policy consistently refers to Taiwan simply as “Taiwan,” as reflected in the Taiwan Relations Act, the Taiwan Travel Act, and the name of the U.S. de facto embassy in Taiwan — the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT). 

There is also precedent for renaming Taiwan’s representative office. Following the Taiwan Policy Review in 1994, the office was renamed from the oddly named “Coordination Council for North American Affairs [CCNAA] Office” to TECRO. More recently, in 2019, the CCNAA headquarters in Taipei was renamed the Taiwan Council for U.S. Affairs (TCUSA), explicitly using “Taiwan.”

Renaming TECRO to the Taiwan Representative Office (TRO) would build on this trajectory and facilitate further alignment with existing U.S. policy and practice. It would underscore America’s commitment to Taiwan’s democracy, strengthen U.S. credibility, counter Chinese coercion, and signal to the world the strength of U.S. support for Taiwan.