TAIWAN : SPEAKING NOTES FOR MR RENTON TO USE WITH
SIR PHILIP GOODHART MP
In
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The attitude of both Peking and Taipei on "one China" means that the recognition of Peking precludes political links with Taiwan. Nothing material has changed in this respect since 1972. [HMG's recognition of the People's Republic of China in 1950 included the acknowledgement that there was only one legitimate Chinese Government, and that Taiwan was a province of China. Until our exchange of Ambassadors with the PRC in 1972 we main- tained a consulate in Taiwan, which was, however, accredited to the provincial authorities rather than to
the central government. The PRC made removal of the consulate a condition of the exchange of Ambassadors. present, only two significant countries (South Africa and Saudi Arabia) maintain diplomatic relations with Taiwan.] But HMG keen to help commercial relations flourish. 1976 the Free Chinese Centre hived off its Taiwan trade promotion activities in London to Majestic Trading Company. DTI and FCO have good informal links with them. We have authorised two additional staff (to make a total of four); Majestic Trading have no complaints about obstacles (e.g. visas, political access) to growth of commercial links. But Taiwan uses Free Chinese Central (FCC) as cultural and information centre and as political front office. They regularly ask for additional staff, but we believe they have sufficient numbers (6 Taiwan based staff) to perform their permitted functions (and they are free to recruit more locally engaged staff here); we cannot allow the FCC to engage in diplomatic activities (e.g. promoting the use of the Taiwan flag).
Commercial Contacts with Taiwan
These have increased in recent years.
Lord Jellicoe while President of BOTB led trade mission
to Taiwan in 1984.
The DTI Assistant Secretary with responsibility for Taiwan visited in 1986, as did his predecessor in 1983.
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