Press Release
22.IX. 2007, GREIFENBERG (GPA) – The State Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Grand Duchy of Greifenberg expresses deep concern regarding the recent rejection of Taiwan’s application for full UN membership on 18 September 2007.
In July 2007, the Republic of China (Taiwan) applied for membership for the fifteenth time since its expulsion on 25 October 1971. This was the first occasion that the Republic of China applied for full UN membership under the name "Taiwan." Its application was rejected by the United Nations Office of Legal Affairs, citing UN General Assembly Resolution 2758, passed by the General Assembly on 25 October 1971, which withdrew recognition of the Republic of China as the legitimate government of China, and recognizing the People’s Republic of China as the sole legitimate government of China.
Since 1991, the Republic of China (Taiwan) has made attempts to participate in the United Nations. But because of the implacable opposition of the People’s Republic of China, the Republic of China has consistently been denied representation at the UN. Every year since 1991 the question of the Republic of China’s representation has been raised on the UN agenda committee by its diplomatic allies, but the matter has always failed to get sufficient votes to be placed on the formal agenda. This is situation is the result of the influence the People’s Republic of China has achieved in the UN since 1971.
The Foreign Ministry is cognizant of the fact that the political status of the Republic of China is a contentious issue. Nevertheless, the Government of the Grand Duchy of Greifenberg is of the opinion that the present position of the United Nations vis-à-vis the Republic of China, namely that the People's Republic of China represents the whole of China as the sole and legitimate representative Government of China, leaves open to question the UN commitment to the concept of self-determination of peoples.
The Government of the Grand Duchy of Greifenberg recognizes that the Government of the People’s Republic of China, founded in 1949, has never held effective jurisdiction over the island of Taiwan, which is an independent sovereign nation. Moreover, the resolutions proposing Republic of China representation since 1991 make it clear that the government in Taipei no longer seeks to represent all of China, but only the people of Taiwan. It is instructive to note that, in recent polls, 80 percent of Taiwanese people surveyed expressed their support for entering the United Nations under the name "Taiwan." Furthermore, the Government of the Grand Duchy of Greifenberg also wishes to emphasize that the United Nations has never taken a formal stance regarding the sovereignty of Taiwan.
The Foreign Ministry considers the rejection of Taiwan’s (Republic of China) recent application for UN membership to be an affront to all nations that claim sovereign status but are denied that status by larger, more influential nations of the world.
As a country which shares democratic values and a respect for the concept of self-determination of peoples, the Grand Duchy of Greifenberg will continue to support the desire of the Taiwanese people to accede to the United Nations as the sovereign state of Taiwan. As a purely intermediary step toward full membership in the United Nations, the Government of the Grand Duchy of Greifenberg calls upon the UN General Assembly to immediately grant Taiwan observer status, as has been done with Palestine. It is the opinion of the Government of the Grand Duchy of Greifenberg that the granting of observer status to the sovereign state of Taiwan would serve as a concrete expression of support for the concept of self-determination of peoples.
Released by the State Ministry of Foreign Affairs
of the Grand Duchy of Greifenberg through
Office of the Government Spokesman
Government Information Office
Grand Duchy of Greifenberg
