"One China, One Taiwan" Resolution introduced in the House

Washington, 29 July 1999

On Thursday, 29 July 1999, a Resolution was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives, urging that the United States should recognize Taiwan's independence if the people of Taiwan opt for such status, and that the United States should immediately adopt a "One China, One Taiwan Policy" which reflects the present day reality that Taiwan and China are two separate nations.

The resolution was co-sponsored by a bi-partisan group of Representatives, including Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Steve Chabot (R-OH), Peter Deutsch (D-FL), Robert E. Andrews (D-NJ), Thomas G. Tancredo (R-CO), Merrill Cook (R-UT), John E. Sweeney (R-NY), and Bob Schaffer (R-CO).

United States House of Representatives

106th CONGRESS 1st Session

Concurrent Resolution H. CON. RES. 166

Expressing the sense of the Congress that the United States should adopt a One China, One Taiwan Policy which reflects the present day reality that Taiwan and China are two separate nations.

• Whereas the people of Taiwan have established a vibrant democracy on the island of Taiwan;
• Whereas the People's Republic of China, which was established in 1949, has not for a single day exercised sovereignty over Taiwan;
• Whereas, since 1991, the government of Taiwan no longer claims to be the sole legitimate government of all of China;
• Whereas the 1972 United States-China Shanghai Communiqué‚ states that "The United States acknowledges that all Chinese on either side of the Taiwan Strait maintain there is but one China and Taiwan is part of China;"
• Whereas the people of Taiwan were not consulted in the conclusion of the 1972 United States - China Shanghai Communiqué or the subsequent United States-China communiqués;
• Whereas the People s Republic of China has used the One China Policy to effectively block Taiwan's entrance into international organizations that require statehood for membership, in particular the United Nations and the World Health Organization;
• Whereas on July 9, 1999, the people of Taiwan through their democratically elected leader, President Lee Teng-hui, for the first time ever referred to Taiwan's ties with China as a "state-to-state" relationship, thus effectively abolishing Taiwan's government's long-held "One China Policy;"
• Whereas numerous opinion polls conducted in Taiwan indicate overwhelming support among the Taiwanese people for this policy-shift; and
• Whereas the United States One China Policy was rendered obsolete by Taiwan's policy shift and no longer reflects reality, for the Taiwan side of the Taiwan Strait has now effectively stated that it no longer holds the belief that Taiwan is part of China;

Now, therefore, be it Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), That it is the sense of the Congress that --

1. The United States should commend the people of Taiwan for having established a democracy on Taiwan over the past decades and for repeatedly reaffirming its dedication to democratic ideals; and
2. the United States should recognize Taiwan's independence if the people of Taiwan opt for such status through a democratic mechanism, including a plebiscite; and
3. in the interim, the United States should immediately adopt a "One China, One Taiwan Policy" which reflects the present day reality that Taiwan and China are two separate nations.