A resolution expressing the sense of the Senate regarding United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758 (XXVI) and the harmful conflation of China's "One China Principle" and the United States "One China Policy".

Bill: 118-sres-687
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Risch, James E. [R-ID]
Introduced: 2024-05-15
Policy area: International Affairs
Subjects: Asia

China

Diplomacy, foreign officials, Americans abroad

International organizations and cooperation

Sovereignty, recognition, national governance and status

Taiwan

Visas and passports
Latest action: action_date: 2024-05-15
text: Referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations. (text: CR S3713-3714)

Summaries:

tv_txt: III 118th CONGRESS 2d Session S. RES. 687 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES May 15, 2024 Mr. Risch (for himself and Mrs. Shaheen ) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations RESOLUTION Expressing the sense of the Senate regarding United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758 (XXVI) and the harmful conflation of China’s One China Principle and the United States One China Policy .

Whereas, on October 25, 1971, United Nations General Assembly passed resolution 2758, which recognizes the Government of the People’s Republic of China (referred to in this preamble as the PRC ) as the representative of the member state China in the United Nations; Whereas the purpose of resolution 2758 was to address the question of which government would represent the China seat at the United Nations, and not to address any other issues, including issues related to Taiwan's ultimate political status; Whereas the PRC has recently linked resolution 2758 with its One China Principle and has claimed that resolution 2758 addresses the matter of Taiwan’s sovereignty; Whereas the One China Principle is a policy held by the Chinese Communist Party that— (1) the PRC is the sole sovereign nation using the name China ; and (2) Taiwan is an inalienable part of China; Whereas resolution 2758 did not endorse and is not equivalent to the One China Principle and countries that supported resolution 2758 do not necessarily accept the One China Principle ; Whereas resolution 2758 does not represent an international consensus regarding the PRC’s stance that Taiwan is part of China; Whereas PRC officials misrepresent resolution 2758 by claiming the adoption of resolution 2758 implies acceptance of the One China Principle and the PRC’s claims to Taiwan; Whereas the PRC misleadingly claims that countries with a one China policy have accepted and abide by the PRC’s One China Principle ; Whereas Daniel Kritenbrink, Assistant Secretary of State, Bureau of East Asia and Pacific Affairs, testified before the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate in 2024 that the PRC misused and misinterpreted resolution 2758 to influence countries to change their diplomatic recognition to the PRC; Whereas the one China policy of the United States acknowledges the PRC’s One China Principle , but affirms that— (1) the United States does not take a position on Taiwan's status; and (2) this issue should be resolved peacefully by the people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait; Whereas, in 1982, during the administration of President Ronald Reagan, the United States conveyed Six Assurances to Taiwan’s President Chiang Ching-kuo, including that the United States had not changed its stance on Taiwan’s sovereignty, and each subsequent United States presidential administration has reaffirmed these Six Assurances; Whereas Taiwan has established representative offices in more than 60 countries and at the European Union and the World Trade Organization, which disproves the PRC’s claim of a unified United Nations position or international consensus on Taiwan’s status; Whereas the PRC has weaponized resolution 2758 and the One China Principle to isolate Taiwan and to prevent its meaningful participation at the United Nations, United Nations-affiliated agencies, and other international fora, including at the World Health Organization, the International Civil Aviation Organization, and Interpol; Whereas the PRC has bolstered its claims and engaged in revisionist history by successfully altering historic United Nations documents to changes references to Taiwan to Taiwan, Province of China ; Whereas, in 2005, the Secretary of the World Health Organization signed a memorandum of understanding with the PRC Ministry of Health regarding how the World Health Organization would engage with Taiwan, which included a requirement that communication with Taiwan go through the PRC; Whereas United Nations General Secretary Ban Ki-Moon cited resolution 2758 when refusing Taiwan’s accession to the United Nations in 2007, based on the incorrect assertion that resolution 2758 supports China’s claim that Taiwan is part of China; Whereas the United Nations has used resolution 2758 as a justification for requiring Taiwanese citizens, including those with official invitations to attend United Nations events, journalists, and representatives of nongovernmental organizations, to obtain PRC-issued Taiwan Compatriot Permits in addition to their passport or a PRC passport to gain entry to United Nations facilities; Whereas Secretary of State Antony Blinken released a statement in 2021, which identified the United Nations’ exclusion of Taiwanese civil society members and emphasized that denying entry to such individuals undermines the work of the United Nations; Whereas, in 2022, Robert O’Brien, former United States National Security Advisor, stated that— (1) the PRC manipulates resolution 2758 to make false claims regarding Taiwan’s status in order to undermine the international order and the international system ; and (2) resolution 2758 relates solely to the occupancy of the China seat at the United Nations and nothing more ; Whereas, in August 2023, the Central American Parliament (also known as PARLACEN ) expelled Taiwan, after more than 20 years as a permanent observer, from holding such status at its sessions and falsely claimed that resolution 2758 deemed Taiwan a province of mainland China, which disqualifies it from participating as an Independent country ; Whereas, since 2016, the PRC has successfully induced or pressured 10 nations: São Tomé and Principe, Panama, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Burkina Faso, Kiribati, Solomon Islands, Nicaragua, Honduras, and Nauru, to cut diplomatic ties with Taiwan; and Whereas the PRC cites resolution 2758 as a justification to coerce, intimidate, or punish sovereign nations for engagement and partnership with Taiwan: Now, therefore, be it

That the Senate— (1) reaffirms that the longstanding one China policy of the United States does not affirmatively recognize the People’s Republic of China’s claim to control over Taiwan and its outlying islands, but rather acknowledges this position, reaffirms the interest of the United States in a peaceful resolution of cross-Strait issues, has not agreed to take any position regarding sovereignty over Taiwan , and will not exert pressure on Taiwan to enter into negotiations with the PRC ; (2) reaffirms that the one China policy of the United States and the similar policies of its partners are not equivalent to the One China Principle of the Chinese Communist Party; (3) emphasizes that United Nations General Assembly resolution 2758 is not equivalent to, and does not endorse, the PRC’s One China Principle ; (4) emphasizes further that resolution 2758 does not take a position on Taiwan’s ultimate political status, as explicitly recognized by PRC leaders at the time, and does not represent a United Nations consensus on Taiwan’s status; (5) opposes China’s use of the One China Principle to coerce the United States, Taiwan, and other countries to accept its claims over Taiwan; (6) supports Taiwan’s diplomatic allies in continuing official relationships with Taiwan, and other nations across the world in strengthening their partnership with Taiwan; (7) reaffirms support for Taiwan’s membership in international organizations for which statehood is not a requirement for membership and encourages meaningful participation for Taiwan in organizations in which its membership is not possible; (8) encourages the United States Government to work with partners on joint efforts to counter China’s false narratives about resolution 2758; and (9) supports the efforts of other countries to differentiate between their policies and the One China Principle to counter China’s propaganda about international views of Taiwan.