Foreign relations of the Republic of China (ROC),more commonly known as Taiwan,are accomplished by efforts of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China,a cabinet-level ministry of the Government of the Republic of China. As of January 2024,the ROC has formal diplomatic relations with 11 of the 193 United Nations member states and with the Holy See,which governs the Vatican City State. 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. In 2021,the Government of the Republic of China had the 33rd largest diplomatic network in the world with 110 offices.
The political status of Taiwan or the Taiwan issue is an ongoing geopolitical dispute about Taiwan,currently controlled by the Republic of China (ROC),that arose in the mid-twentieth century. Originally based in mainland China before and during World War II,the ROC government retreated to Taiwan in 1949 after it was defeated by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) during the Chinese Civil War and the subsequent establishment of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Since then,the effective jurisdiction of the ROC has been limited to Taiwan,Penghu,Kinmen,Matsu,and smaller islands.
One China is a phrase describing the relationship between the People's Republic of China (PRC) based on Mainland China,and the Republic of China (ROC) based on the Taiwan Area. "One China" asserts that there is only one de jure Chinese nation despite the de facto division between the two rival governments in the aftermath of the Chinese Civil War. The term may refer,in alphabetical order,to one of the following:
The relationship between the People's Republic of China (PRC) and the United States of America (USA) has been complex and at times tense since the establishment of the PRC and the retreat of the government of the Republic of China to Taiwan in 1949. Since the normalization of relations in the 1970s,the US–China relationship has been marked by numerous perennial disputes including the political status of Taiwan,territorial disputes in the South China Sea,and more recently the treatment of Uyghurs in Xinjiang. They have significant economic ties and are significantly intertwined,yet they also have a global hegemonic great power rivalry. As of 2024,China and the United States are the world's second-largest and largest economies by nominal GDP,as well as the largest and second-largest economies by GDP (PPP) respectively. Collectively,they account for 44.2% of the global nominal GDP,and 34.7% of global PPP-adjusted GDP.
As a result of the surrender and occupation of Japan at the end of World War II,the islands of Taiwan and Penghu were placed under the governance of the Republic of China (ROC),ruled by the Kuomintang (KMT),on 25 October 1945. Following the February 28 massacre in 1947,martial law was declared in 1949 by the Governor of Taiwan,Chen Cheng,and the ROC Ministry of National Defense. Following the end of the Chinese Civil War in 1949,the ROC government retreated from the mainland as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) proclaimed the establishment of the People's Republic of China. The KMT retreated to Taiwan and declared Taipei the temporary capital of the ROC. For many years,the ROC and PRC each continued to claim in the diplomatic arena to be the sole legitimate government of "China". In 1971,the United Nations expelled the ROC and replaced it with the PRC.
The United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758,also known as the Resolution on Admitting Peking,was passed in response to the United Nations General Assembly Resolution 1668 that required any change in China's representation in the UN be determined by a two-thirds vote referring to Article 18 of the UN Charter. The resolution,passed on 25 October 1971,recognized the People's Republic of China (PRC) as "the only legitimate representative of China to the United Nations" and removed "the representatives of Chiang Kai-shek" from the United Nations.
The Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office (TECRO),also known as Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO),Taipei Representative Office (TRO) or Taipei Mission,is an alternative diplomatic institution serving as a de facto embassy or a consulate of the Republic of China to exercise the foreign affairs and consular services in specific countries which have established formal diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China. The PRC denies the legitimacy of the ROC as a sovereign state and claims the ROC-controlled territories as an integral part of its territory. An exclusive mandate,namely One-China policy,requires that any country wishing to establish a diplomatic relationship with the PRC must first sever any formal relationship with the ROC. According to The Fletcher Forum of World Affairs,"non-recognition of the Taiwanese government is a prerequisite for conducting formal diplomatic relations with the PRC—in effect forcing other governments to choose between Beijing and Taipei." As a result,these countries only allow the ROC to establish representative offices instead of a fully-fledged embassy or consulate for the purpose of conducting practical bilateral relations without granting full diplomatic recognition.
Cross-strait relations are the political and economic relations between China and Taiwan across the Taiwan Strait. Due to the existing controversy over the status of Taiwan and the Chinese legitimacy question,they are also not defined as diplomatic relations by either side.
As of May 2024,there are 70 diplomatic missions in Hong Kong,of which 62 are consulates-general and 8 are officially recognised bodies in Hong Kong. As Hong Kong has the status of a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China,some consuls-general in Hong Kong report directly to their respective foreign ministries,rather than to their Embassies in Beijing.
India and Republic of China (ROC) had formal diplomatic relations from 1942 to 1949. After severing diplomatic relations,the bilateral relations have improved since the 1990s,despite both countries not maintaining official diplomatic relations. India only recognises the People's Republic of China (PRC) since 1949. However,India's economic and commercial links as well as people-to-people contacts with Taiwan have expanded in recent years.
The Consulate-General of the People's Republic of China in Los Angeles is the People's Republic of China's (PRC) diplomatic mission headquartered at 443 Shatto Place in the Koreatown neighborhood of Los Angeles,California,United States. The passport and visa office is on the third floor of 500 Shatto Place,Los Angeles,California. The consulate's service area is Southern California,Arizona,Hawaii,New Mexico,and the U.S. Pacific territories.
The Consulate General of the United States,Chengdu, was a diplomatic mission in Wuhou District,Chengdu,China from 1985 to 2020.
Hong Kong–North Korea relations are bilateral relations between Hong Kong and Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
The Consulate General of the Philippines in Houston is a diplomatic mission of the Republic of the Philippines in the United States,representing the country's interests in Texas. It is located at the first floor of 9990 Richmond Avenue in the Westchase neighborhood of west Houston.
