Heated Debate Arises over Taiwan’s Status as UN’s 78th General Assembly Convenes

The UN General Assembly is set to commence its high-level meetings next week, with a growing number of voices demanding an end to the discrimination against Taiwan within the international organization. Taiwan, a country of 23 million people, has been excluded from the UN since 1973 when U.N. Resolution 2758 recognized the Chinese communist regime as the legitimate representative of China. As tensions in the Taiwan Strait escalate, so does the debate surrounding Taiwan’s status within the UN. A coalition of Taiwanese-American organizations recently accused the UN of succumbing to pressure from China and wrongfully excluding Taiwan from the diplomatic organization. In response, US lawmakers rejected Resolution 2758 and called for Taiwan’s inclusion in international organizations. Despite this, Taiwan is not allowed entry into the UN, with Taiwanese journalists also being denied access. This exclusion has led to questions about China’s influence within the UN. Some Taiwanese organizations in Northern California have urged Americans to support Taiwan’s participation in the UN, emphasizing that excluding the democratic nation from the organization would be a significant loss for the international community. The UN’s exclusion of Taiwan is founded on Resolution 2758, passed in 1973, which wrongly interpreted the resolution as an endorsement of China’s “One China” policy. However, the US Congress recently acknowledged that Resolution 2758 did not address Taiwan’s representation and did not take a position on China-Taiwan relations or Taiwan’s sovereignty. This recognition prompted backlash from Chinese state media, accusing the US Congress of deliberately distorting Resolution 2758. In response, Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has appealed to the UN to address the misrepresentation of Resolution 2758 and cease its discriminatory policy against Taiwan passport holders and journalists. The statement also called on the UN to allow Taiwan to meaningfully participate in meetings, mechanisms, and activities related to the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.



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