United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758
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UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 | |
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Date | 25 October 1971 |
Meeting no. | 1,976 |
Code | A/RES/2758(XXVI) (Document) |
Subject | Restoration of the lawful rights of the People's Republic of China in the United Nations |
Voting summary |
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Result | Adopted |
United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758 | |
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Hanyu Pinyin | Liánhéguó Dàhuì 2758 hào juéyì |
Wade–Giles | Lien2-ho2-kuo2 Ta4-hui4 2758 hao4 chueh2-yi4 |
Tongyong Pinyin | Lianheguo Dahuei 2758 hao jyueyi |
Yale Romanization | Lyanhegwo Dahwei 2758 hau Jyweyi |
The United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758 (also known as the Resolution on Admitting Peking) was passed in response to the
Background
China was one of the original 51 member states of the
The PRC claimed to be the successor government of the ROC, while the Kuomintang in Taiwan championed the continued existence of the Republic of China. Both claimed to be the only legitimate Chinese government, and each refused to maintain diplomatic relations with countries that have recognized the other. The ROC continued to represent China in the UN until Resolution 2758 was passed.[citation needed]
The original Members of the United Nations shall be the states which, having participated in the United Nations Conference on International Organization at San Francisco, or having previously signed the Declaration by United Nations of 1 January 1942, sign the present Charter and ratify it in accordance with Article 110.
Additionally, the ROC had signed and ratified the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations on 18 April 1961 and 19 December 1969 respectively.[citation needed]
Proceedings at the United Nations
On 15 July 1971, 17 UN members: Albania, Algeria, the Congo, Cuba, Guinea, Iraq, Mali, Mauritania, North Yemen, Romania, Somalia, South Yemen, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Yugoslavia, and Zambia, requested that a question of the "Restoration of the lawful rights of the People's Republic of China in the United Nations" be placed on the provisional agenda of the twenty-sixth session of the United Nations General Assembly.[4] In an explanatory memorandum accompanying their request, the 17 UN members observed that for years they had protested against what they considered were hostile and discriminatory policy followed by several governments with regard to the communist government of mainland China, which they considered to be the genuine representative of the Chinese people.[4] The existence of the People's Republic of China, they declared, was a reality which could "not be changed to suit the myth of a so called Republic of China, fabricated out of a portion of Chinese territory".[4] In the view of the 17 UN members, the ROC were unlawful authorities installed in the island of Taiwan which claimed to represent China, and they remained there only because of the permanent presence of United States Armed Forces.[4] No important international problems, they added, could be solved without the participation of the People's Republic of China. It was in the fundamental interests, they concluded, of the United Nations to "restore" promptly to the People's Republic of China its seat in the organization, thus putting an end to a "grave injustice" and "dangerous situation" which had been perpetuated in order to fulfill a policy that had been increasingly repudiated.[4] This meant the immediate expulsion of the representatives of the Chiang Kai-shek regime from the seat which it held in the United Nations.[4]
On 17 August 1971, the United States requested that a second item, "The representation of China in the United Nations" also be placed on the provisional agenda.
On 22 September 1971, the United States proposed at the UN General Committee that the two items be combined into one item called "The Question of China".[4] The proposal was, however, rejected by 12 votes to 9 with 3 abstentions.[4]
On 25 September 1971, the first Albanian-backed draft resolution, A/L.630 and Add.1 and 2, was submitted by 23 states including 17 of the states which had joined in placing the question on the agenda, to: "...restore to the People's Republic of China all its rights and expel forthwith the representatives of Chiang Kai-shek."[5]
On 29 September 1971, a second draft resolution, A/L.632 and Add.1 and 2, sponsored by 22 members including the U.S., was proposed declaring that any proposal to deprive the Republic of China of representation was an important question under Article 18 of the UN Charter, and thus would require a two-thirds supermajority for approval.[6]
On 29 September 1971, a third draft resolution, A/L.633, sponsored by 19 members including the U.S., was proposed by which the Assembly would affirm the right of representation of the People's Republic of China and recommend that it be seated as one of the five permanent members of the Security Council, while also affirming the continuing right of representation of the Republic of China.[7]
On 15 October 1971 the representatives of 22 UN members requested the
Discussion at the Assembly took place at 12
On 25 October 1971, the voting took place. In the first vote held, the Assembly rejected the U.S. backed proposal that the matter would require a supermajority vote — the 'important question motion' [A/L.632 and Add.1 and 2].[8] The Assembly then voted on a separate U.S. proposal that the words "and to expel forthwith the representatives of Chiang Kai-shek from the place which they unlawfully occupied at the United Nations and in all the organizations related to it" be removed from the draft resolution A/L.630 and Add.1 and 2. The U.S. representative suggested that this motion, if adopted, would "have the effect of welcoming the PRC to the General Assembly and the Security Council, while at the same time not affecting the representation of the ROC in this hall".[8] The motion was rejected by a vote of 61 to 51, with 16 abstentions.[8]
At this point the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the ROC, Chow Shu-Kai, stated "in view of the frenzied and irrational manners that have been exhibited in this hall, the delegation of the Republic of China has now decided not to take part in any further proceedings of this General Assembly."[8] He said the "ideals upon which the United Nations was founded and which the General Assembly has now been betrayed".[8]
The Assembly then adopted draft Albanian proposed resolution A/L.630 and Add.1 and 2, by a roll-call vote of 76 to 35, with 17 abstentions, as Resolution 2758.[2] The Beijing government began representing China at the UN from 15 November 1971 and its delegates were seated at the UN Security Council meeting held on 23 November 1971, the first such meeting where representatives of the Beijing government represented China.[4]
Votes
Vote | Tally | States | Percent of members | Percent of votes |
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In favour | 76 | Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Austria, Belgium, Bhutan, Botswana, Bulgaria, Burma, Burundi, Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic, Cameroon, Canada, Ceylon, Chile, Cuba, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Ecuador, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Ghana, Guinea, Guyana, Hungary, Iceland, India, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Kenya, Kuwait, Kingdom of Laos, Libyan Arab Republic, Malaysia, Mali, Mauritania, Mexico, Mongolia, Morocco, Nepal, Netherlands, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, People's Democratic Republic of Yemen, People's Republic of the Congo, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Somalia, Sudan, Sweden, Syrian Arab Republic, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Uganda, Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, United Republic of Tanzania, Yemen, Yugoslavia, Zambia | 59.37% | 68.46% |
Against | 35 | Australia, Bolivia, Brazil, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo (Democratic Republic of), Costa Rica, Dahomey, Dominican Republic, EI Salvador, Gabon, Gambia, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Ivory Coast, Japan, Khmer Republic, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malta, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Paraguay, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Swaziland, United States of America, Upper Volta, Uruguay, Venezuela | 27.34% | 31.53% |
Abstain | 17 | Argentina, Bahrain, Barbados, Colombia, Cyprus, Fiji, Greece, Indonesia, Jamaica, Jordan, Lebanon, Luxembourg, Mauritius, Panama, Qatar, Spain, Thailand | 13.28% | X |
Total | 128 | 100% | 100% | |
Source: Resolution 2758 voting record[9] |
Later developments
On 21 September 2007, the UN General Assembly rejected Taiwan's membership bid to "join the UN under the name of Taiwan", citing Resolution 2758 as acknowledging that Taiwan is part of China.[10] The UN General Assembly and its General Committee's recommendations on the "Taiwan question" reflected long-standing UN policy and is mirrored in other documents promulgated by the United Nations.[11][12][13] For example, the UN's "Final Clauses of Multilateral Treaties, Handbook" (2003) states:
...regarding the Taiwan Province of China, the Secretary-General follows the General Assembly’s guidance incorporated in resolution 2758 (XXVI) of the General Assembly of 25 October 1971 on the restoration of the lawful rights of the People’s Republic of China in the United Nations. The General Assembly decided to recognize the representatives of the Government of the People’s Republic of China as the only legitimate representatives of China to the United Nations. Hence, instruments received from the Taiwan Province of China will not be accepted by the Secretary-General in his capacity as depositary.[14]
Interpretation disagreements
United States
The US's official policy is to recognize the PRC government as "the sole legal government of China", and "it acknowledged the Chinese position that there is but one China and Taiwan is part of China".[15] While keeping diplomatic relations with the PRC, the US expects that "the future of Taiwan will be determined by peaceful means".[16][17] The US "would continue to maintain cultural, commercial, and other unofficial relations with the people of Taiwan".[15] According to a 2014 Congressional Research Service (CRS) report, the US administrations have not explicitly stated a position on the political status of Taiwan.[18]
In April 2024, US State Department Deputy Assistant Secretary Mark Lambert spoke at a German Marshall Fund (GMF) seminar, saying that "Resolution 2758 does not endorse, is not equivalent to, and does not reflect a consensus for the PRC's 'one China' principle".[19] Lambert added that the Chinese government "mischaracterizes the resolution by falsely conflating it with China’s ‘one China’ principle and wrongly asserts that it reflects an international consensus for its ‘one China’ principle."[20][21] In May 2024, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said that the US's 'one China' policy "has not changed".[22]
According to some analysts at the GMF, Resolution 2758 solved the issue of "China's representation" in the United Nations—but it left the issue of Taiwan's representation unresolved.[23][19]
See also
- China and the United Nations
- United Nations General Assembly resolution
- United Nations General Assembly Resolution 505
References
- ^ "Charter of the United Nations: Chapter IV: The General Assembly". Archived from the original on 28 November 2010. Retrieved 23 December 2010.
- ^ a b UN General Assembly (1971). "Restoration of the lawful rights of the People's Republic of China in the United Nations". Resolutions Adopted by the General Assembly During Its 26th Session, 21 September-22 December 1971: 2. Archived from the original on 27 December 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2023.
- ^ "Treaty of Peace with Japan" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 29 September 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
- ^ ISBN 978-92-1-060198-6. Archivedfrom the original on 26 November 2023. Retrieved 31 December 2023.
- ^ Albania; Algeria; Ceylon; Cuba; Guinea, Equatorial; Guinea; Iraq; Mali; Mauritania; Nepal; Pakistan; People's Democratic Republic of Yemen; People's Republic of the Congo; Romania; Somalia (25 September 1971). "Restoration of the lawful rights of People's Republic of China in the United Nations: draft resolution / Albania, Algeria, Ceylon, Cuba, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea, Iraq, Mali, Mauritania, Nepal, Pakistan, People's Democratic Republic of Yemen, People's Republic of the Congo, Romania, Somalia, Syrian Arab Republic, Sudan, United Republic of Tanzania, Yemen, Yugoslavia and Zambia". United Nations. Archived from the original on 23 December 2023. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
- ^ Australia; Colombia; Costa Rica; Dominican Republic; El Salvador; Fiji; Gambia; Guatemala; Haiti; Honduras; Japan; Lesotho; Liberia; New Zealand; Nicaragua; Philippines; Swaziland; Thailand; United States; Uruguay (29 September 1971). "Restoration of the lawful rights of People's Republic of China in the United Nations: draft resolution /: Australia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Fiji, Gambia, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Japan, Lesotho, Liberia, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Philippines. Swaziland, Thailand, United States of America and Uruguay". United Nations. Archived from the original on 23 December 2023. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Australia; Chad; Costa Rica; Dominican Republic; Fiji; Gambia; Haiti; Honduras; Japan; Lesotho; Liberia; New Zealand; Philippines; Swaziland; Thailand; United States; Uruguay (29 September 1971). "Restoration of the lawful rights of People's Republic of China in the United Nations: draft resolution /: Australia, Chad, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Fiji, Gambia, Haiti, Honduras, Japan, Lesotho, Liberia, New Zealand, Philippines, Swaziland, Thailand, United States of America and Uruguay". United Nations. Archived from the original on 23 December 2023. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
{{cite journal}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b c d e United Nations (1974). General Assembly, 26th session: 1976th plenary meeting, Monday, 25 October 1971, New York. pp. 33–35, 40. Archived from the original on 10 March 2020. Retrieved 15 August 2019.
- ^ "General Assembly, 26th session : 1976th plenary meeting, Monday, 25 October 1971, New York (A/PV.1976)". United Nations Digital Library. 1974. p. 41. Archived from the original on 15 February 2020. Retrieved 15 August 2019.
- ^ "GENERAL ASSEMBLY ADOPTS WORK PROGRAMME FOR SIXTY-SECOND SESSION, REJECTS BID TO INCLUDE AGENDA ITEM ON TAIWAN | UN Press". press.un.org. Archived from the original on 29 December 2023. Retrieved 29 December 2023.
- ^ Tribunal, UN Administrative (21 November 1996). "Administrative Tribunal judgement no. 778 :: case no. 841, Chu against the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Board". United Nations. Archived from the original on 15 December 2023. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
- ^ "Secretary-General's press conference | United Nations Secretary-General". www.un.org. Archived from the original on 1 August 2021. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
- ^ "Highlight 9 July 2008 | United Nations Secretary-General". www.un.org. Archived from the original on 24 May 2024. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
- ^ ""Final Clauses of Multilateral Treaties, Handbook", United Nations, 2003" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 12 March 2012. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
- ^ a b Governments of United States of America and the People's Republic of China (17 August 1982). Wikisource. – via
- ^ Congress of the United States (10 April 1979). Wikisource. – via
- ^ Kan, Shirley A.; Morrison, Wayne M. (4 January 2013). "U.S.-Taiwan Relationship: Overview of Policy Issues" (PDF). Congressional Research Service. p. 4. Archived (PDF) from the original on 11 December 2016. Retrieved 11 May 2017.
- ^ Kan, Shirley A. (10 October 2014). "China/Taiwan: Evolution of the "One China" Policy—Key Statements from Washington, Beijing, and Taipei" (PDF). Congressional Research Service. p. 39. Archived (PDF) from the original on 10 April 2017. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
- ^ a b Glaser, Bonnie S.; deLisle, Jacques (30 April 2024). "Exposing the PRC's Distortion of UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 to Press its Claim Over Taiwan". German Marshall Fund. Archived from the original on 30 April 2024. Retrieved 30 April 2024.
- ^ "US official raps China over UN Resolution 2758". Taipei Times. 1 May 2024. Archived from the original on 1 May 2024. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
- ^ Ching, Nike (28 May 2024). "US refutes China's characterization of UN Resolution 2758". Voice of America. Archived from the original on 29 May 2024. Retrieved 29 May 2024.
- ^ Miller, Matthew (28 May 2024). "Department Press Briefing – May 28, 2024". United States Department of State. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
- ^ Drun, Jessica; Glaser, Bonnie S. (24 March 2022). "The Distortion of UN Resolution 2758 and Limits on Taiwan's Access to the United Nations". German Marshall Fund. Archived from the original on 29 December 2022. Retrieved 29 December 2022.