CCTV: At a seminar held by a US think tank, Mark Lambert, US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State in the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs and China Coordinator said that Resolution 2758 does not endorse, equate to, or reflect an international consensus on the one-China principle and has absolutely no bearing on countries’ sovereignty choices with respect to their relationships with Taiwan. He said the resolution did not preclude Taiwan’s meaningful participation in the UN system and other multilateral fora and did not constitute a UN institutional position on the political status of Taiwan. What’s your comment?

Lin Jian: Mark Lambert’s remarks are a total distortion of the resolution and facts. They misrepresent the history, and tread upon the international law and basic norms of international relations. It is shocking and outrageous that a US State Department official overseeing China-US relations would speak so irresponsibly and brazenly tell and spread lies. The Chinese side has strongly protested to the US side on those remarks.

There is but one China in the world. Taiwan is an inalienable part of China’s territory. The Government of the People’s Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China. This is an undeniable fact, a universal consensus of the international community and a basic norm in international relations. One hundred and eighty-three countries in the world, including the US, have established and are advancing diplomatic relations with China on the basis of the one-China principle.

Resolution 2758 adopted at the 26th Session of the UN General Assembly in 1971 stated in black and white that it “decides to restore all its rights to the People’s Republic of China and to recognize the representatives of its Government as the only legitimate representatives of China to the United Nations, and to expel forthwith the representatives of Chiang Kai-shek from the place which they unlawfully occupy at the United Nations and in all the organizations related to it.” The resolution made it clear that the government of the People’s Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China, including Taiwan, at the UN; Taiwan is not a country but a part of China’s territory. It makes clear Taiwan’s status as a non-sovereign entity. UNGA Resolution 2758 resolved once and for all politically, legally and procedurally the issue of the representation of the whole of China, including Taiwan, at the UN. The resolution also made clear that there can only be one seat representing China at the UN and precluded the possibility of “two Chinas” or “one China, one Taiwan.”

Since the adoption of the resolution, the one-China principle has been observed by the UN and its specialized agencies on the Taiwan question. Taiwan is referred to as “Taiwan, province of China” in all UN’s official documents. It was clearly stated in the official legal opinions of the Office of Legal Affairs of the UN Secretariat that “the United Nations considers ‘Taiwan’ as a province of China with no separate status,” and the “‘authorities’ in ‘Taipei’ are not considered to... enjoy any form of government status.”

The Taiwan region’s participation in the activities of international organizations must and can only be handled in accordance with the one-China principle. The United Nations is an intergovernmental international organization composed of sovereign states. Taiwan, a province of China, has no basis, reason or right to join the UN or its relevant agencies. This is stipulated in the UN Charter and is the principle that all UN member states must follow and an obligation that they should fulfill.

As a major country and permanent member of the UN Security Council, the US is supposed to take the lead in observing the UNGA resolutions and abiding by international law and basic norms in international relations, but it does just the opposite. The US deliberately distorted UNGA’s Resolution 2758 and propagated the narrative of so-called “Taiwan’s meaningful participation in the UN system” to hollow out the one-China principle, embolden and support “Taiwan independence” separatist activities, and serve its pernicious aim of suppressing China. Such an attempt to turn back the wheel of history and ignore global opinion will only be resisted and opposed by the international force for justice and will not succeed.

UNGA Resolution 2758 brooks no challenge, and the one-China principle is unshakable. To play the “Taiwan card” is to drive oneself into the wall. Supporting Taiwan will inevitably backfire. We urge the US to stand on the side of the majority of countries in the world, stand on the right side of history, follow the solemn decision made by the UNGA, abide by the one-China principle and the three China-US joint communiqués, act on the US leader’s commitment of not supporting “Taiwan independence,” “two Chinas” or “one China, one Taiwan,” and stop stepping on China’s baseline and red line on the Taiwan question in any way.