| Statement |
Source |
| The determination of the future status of Formosa must await the restoration of security in the Pacific, a peace settlement with Japan, or consideration by the United Nations. |
Harry S Truman, June 27, 1950 (Taiwan's undetermined status) |
| The Japanese peace treaty of 1951 ended Japanese sovereignty over the islands but did not formally cede them to "China," either Communist or Nationalist. |
Mandate for Change 1953-1956 by Dwight D. Eisenhower |
| By the peace treaty of Sept. 8, 1951, signed with the United States and other powers, Japan renounced "all right, title and claim to Formosa and the Pescadores." The treaty did not specify the nation to which such right, title and claim passed. |
Starr Memorandum, Dept. of State, July 13, 1971 |
| It is the understanding of the Senate that nothing in the [1955 ROC-USA Mutual Defense] treaty shall be construed as affecting or modifying the legal status or sovereignty of the territories to which it applies. |
| ... technical sovereignty over Formosa and the Pescadores has never been settled. That is because the Japanese Peace Treaty merely involves a renunciation by Japan of its right and title to these islands. But the future title is not determined by the Japanese Peace Treaty nor is it determined by the Peace Treaty which was concluded between the Republic of China and Japan. |
| Article 2 of the Japanese Peace treaty, signed on Sept. 8, 1951 at San Francisco, provides that "Japan renounces all right, title and claim to Formosa and the Pescadores." The same language was used in Article 2 of the Treaty of Peace between China and Japan signed on April 28, 1952. In neither treaty did Japan cede this area to any particular entity. |
| As Taiwan and the Pescadores are not covered by any existing international disposition, sovereignty over the area is an unsettled question subject to future international resolution. |
| [T]he sovereignty of Formosa has not been transferred to China .... |
| The United States (1) would not set a date for ending arms sales to Taiwan; (2) would not hold prior consultations with the PRC regarding arms sales to Taiwan; (3) would not play a mediation role between the PRC and Taiwan; (4) would not revise the Taiwan Relations Act; (5) would not alter its position regarding sovereignty over Taiwan; and (6) would not exert pressure on Taiwan to enter into negotiations with the PRC. |
President Ronald Reagan, July, 1982 (The Six Assurances) |
| We don't support independence for Taiwan; . . . or 'two Chinas'; or 'one Taiwan, one China'; . . . and we don't believe that Taiwan should be a member in any organization for which statehood is a requirement. |
President William Clinton, June 30, 1998 (The Three-Noes Policy) |
| The United States does not support Taiwan Independence. |
Vice President Richard Cheney, April 13, 2004 |
| Our policy is clear. There is only one China. Taiwan is not independent. It does not enjoy sovereignty as a nation, and that remains our policy, our firm policy. |
Secretary of State Colin Powell, Oct. 25, 2004 |
| We also take very seriously President Chen's repeated commitments not to permit the constitutional reform process to touch on sovereignty issues, which includes territorial definition. |
Daily Press Briefing, Dept. of State, Sept. 25, 2006 |
| Taiwan, or the Republic of China, is not at this point a state in the international community. The position of the United States government is that the ROC -- Republic of China -- is an issue undecided, and it has been left undecided, as you know, for many, many years. |
National Security Council Senior Director for Asian Affairs Dennis Wilder, Aug. 30, 2007 |
| Well, [the PRC officials] are obviously quite concerned about what they see as possible moves towards de jure independence, and I restated our position that we are opposed to any effort by anyone unilaterally to change the status quo. |
Sec. of Defense Robert Gates, Nov. 6, 2007 |
| The United States supports, as appropriate, Taiwan's involvement in international organizations, processes, agreements, and gatherings where statehood is not a prerequisite. |
Mandatory Guidance from Department of State Regarding Contact with Taiwan, Sept. 2008 |
| We do not support Taiwan independence. We are opposed to unilateral attempts by either side to change the status quo. |
David B. Shear, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, March 18, 2010 |
| The United States is a strong, consistent supporter of Taiwan's meaningful participation in international organizations. We frequently make our views on this topic clear to all members of the international community, including the PRC. |
| ... the United States has for years demonstrated in a very public way that we do not support independence for Taiwan. |
Sec. of Defense Robert Gates, June 5, 2010 |