Cross-Strait relationsThe Cross-Strait relations (sometimes called Mainland–Taiwan relations, or TaiwanChina relations) are the relations between China (officially the People's Republic of China, PRC) and Taiwan (officially the Republic of China, ROC). The relationship has been complex and controversial due to the dispute on the political status of Taiwan after the administration of Taiwan was transferred from Japan to the Republic of China at the end of World War II in 1945, and the subsequent split between the PRC and ROC as a result of the Chinese Civil War.
One ChinaThe term One China may refer, in alphabetical order, to one of the following: The One China policy refers to a United States policy of strategic ambiguity regarding Taiwan. In a 1972 joint communiqué with the PRC, the United States "acknowledges that all Chinese on either side of the Taiwan Strait maintain there is but one China and that Taiwan is a part of China" and "does not challenge that position." It reaffirms the U.S. interest in a peaceful settlement of the Taiwan question.
Foreign relations of TaiwanTaiwan, currently has formal diplomatic relations with 12 of the 193 United Nations member states and with the Holy See, which governs Vatican City, as of . In addition to these relations, the ROC also maintains unofficial relations with 59 UN member states, one self-declared state (Somaliland), three territories (Guam, Hong Kong, and Macau), and the European Union via its representative offices and consulates under the One China principle. The Government of the Republic of China has the 31st largest diplomatic network in the world with 110 offices.
Politics of the Republic of ChinaThe Republic of China (ROC), commonly known as Taiwan, is governed in a framework of a representative democratic republic under a five-power system first envisioned by Sun Yat-sen in 1906, whereby under the constitutional amendments, the President is head of state and the Premier (President of the Executive Yuan) is head of government, and of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in primarily with the parliament and limited by government.
History of TaiwanThe history of the island of Taiwan dates back tens of thousands of years to the earliest known evidence of human habitation. The sudden appearance of a culture based on agriculture around 3000 BC is believed to reflect the arrival of the ancestors of today's Taiwanese indigenous peoples. Han Chinese gradually came into contact with Taiwan starting in the late 13th century and started settling there by the early 17th century.
Chinese unificationChinese unification, also known as Cross-Strait unification or Chinese reunification, is the potential unification of territories currently controlled, or claimed, by the People's Republic of China ("China" or "Mainland China") and the Republic of China ("Taiwan") under one political entity, possibly the formation of a political union between the two republics. Together with full Taiwan independence, unification is one of the main proposals to address questions on the political status of Taiwan, which is a central focus of Cross-Strait relations.
Political status of TaiwanThe controversy surrounding the political status of Taiwan or the Taiwan issue is a result of World War II, the second phase of the Chinese Civil War (1945–1949), and the Cold War. The basic issue hinges on whom the islands of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, and Matsu should be administered by. The main options include: Maintain the current ROC/PRC (Taiwan/Mainland) status quo. Taiwan as a de facto separate self-governing entity. Become part of China as a province or special administrative region of the PRC under a one country, two systems framework (as Hong Kong and Macau did).
Pan-Blue CoalitionThe pan-Blue coalition, pan-Blue force or pan-Blue groups is a political coalition in the Republic of China (Taiwan) consisting of the Kuomintang (KMT), People First Party (PFP), New Party (CNP), Non-Partisan Solidarity Union (NPSU), and Young China Party (YCP). The name comes from the party color of the Kuomintang. This coalition maintains that the Republic of China instead of the People's Republic of China is the legitimate government of China, favors a Chinese and Taiwanese dual identity over an exclusive Taiwanese identity, and favors greater friendly exchange with Mainland China, as opposed to the Pan-Green Coalition.
Taiwan ProvinceTaiwan Province (; PFS: Thòi-vàn-sén or Thòi-vân-sén) is a nominal administrative division of the Republic of China (ROC). The province remains a titular division as a part of the Constitution of the Republic of China, but it is no longer considered to have any administrative function practically. Taiwan Province covers approximately 69% of the island of Taiwan, and comprises around 31% of the total population. The province initially covered the entire island of Taiwan (Formosa), Penghu (the Pescadores), Orchid Island, Green Island, Xiaoliuqiu Island, and their surrounding islands.
Taiwan independence movementThe Taiwan independence movement is a political movement which advocates the formal declaration of an independent and sovereign Taiwanese state, as opposed to Chinese unification or the status quo in Cross-Strait relations. Currently, Taiwan's political status is ambiguous. China currently claims it is a province of the People's Republic of China (PRC), whereas the current Tsai Ing-wen administration of Taiwan maintains that Taiwan is already an independent country as the Republic of China (ROC) and thus does not have to push for any sort of formal independence.