Shanghai Communiqué (1972)

In 1972, the Cold War produced a rapprochement in Sino-American relations to counter the threat the USSR posed. In the Shanghai Communiqué, the US initiated a "One China Policy," although Taiwan had never been part of China. The US abandoned Taiwan and its people to clear the path for establishing diplomatic relations with the PRC, resulting in Taiwan's complete diplomatic and political isolation. The collapse of the USSR has removed the Soviet threat and rendered the old US strategy of the US playing the "China Card" obsolete. A revision of the 1972 Communiqué should be called for to grant Taiwan the international status and recognition it deserves.