Foreign relations of Taiwan
overview of the foreign relations of the Republic of China on Taiwan
Foreign relations of Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), are accomplished by efforts of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, a cabinet-level ministry of the central government. As of January 2024, the ROC has formal diplomatic relations with 11 of the 193 United Nations member states and with the Holy See, which governs the Vatican City State. In addition to these relations, the ROC also maintains unofficial relations with 59 UN member states, one self-declared state (Somaliland), three territories (Guam, Hong Kong, and Macau; although, relations with the latter two have been suspended since 2021), and the European Union via its representative offices and consulates. As of 2025, the Government of the Republic of China ranked 33rd on the Diplomacy Index with 110 offices.
Historically, the ROC has required its diplomatic allies to recognize it as the sole legitimate government of "China", competing for exclusive use of the name "China" with the PRC. During the early 1970s, the ROC was replaced by the PRC as the recognized government of "China" in the UN following Resolution 2758, which also led to the ROC's loss of its key position as a permanent member on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to the PRC in 1971.
As international recognition of the ROC continues to dwindle concurrently with the PRC's rise as a great power, ROC foreign policy has changed into a more realistic position of actively seeking dual recognition with the PRC. For consistency with the one China policy, many international organizations that the ROC participates in use alternative names, including "Chinese Taipei" at FIFA and the International Olympic Committee (IOC), among others.
Historical context
The ROC government participated in the 1943 Moscow Conference, the Dumbarton Oaks Conference, and the United Nations Conference on International Organization and was a charter member of the United Nations after participating in the alliance that won World War II. In 1949, the Nationalists lost the Chinese Civil War in mainland China and retreated to Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, and Matsu, forming a rump state. Despite the major loss of territory, the ROC continued to be recognized as the legitimate government of China by the UN and by many non-Communist states.
American foreign policy 1950–1971 called for full recognition and support of the government of China in Taiwan. As the Korean War (1950–1953) broke out, Taiwan was not allowed to send military support to South Korea.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Foreign relations of Taiwan” is overview of the foreign relations of the Republic of China on Taiwan. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Foreign, relations and Taiwan, not as a finished interpretation.
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Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 18, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q197428. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 2024, 2021, 2025 and 1971.
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