Taiwan Relations Act - Reactions

Reactions

The passage of the Act severely damaged Sino-American relations in the eyes of the Chinese leadership, with Deng citing the Act in 1984 as the single most important reason why China discontinued its nascent pro-American foreign policy. From that time on, the PRC aligned itself with the Third World countries rather than with the United States or the Soviet Union, engaging itself in various movements such as nuclear non-proliferation that would allow it to critique the superpowers. In the August 17th communique of 1982, the United States agreed to reduce arms sales to Taiwan. However, the United States declared that the United States would not formally recognize PRC's sovereignty over Taiwan as part of the Six Assurances offered to Taipei in 1982. In the late 1990s, the United States Congress passed a non-binding resolution stating that relations between Taiwan and the United States will be honored through the TRA first. This resolution, which puts greater weight on the TRA's value over that of the three communiques, was signed by President Bill Clinton as well. A July 2007 Congressional Research Service Report confirmed that US policy has not recognized the PRC's sovereignty over Taiwan. The PRC continues to view the Taiwan Relations Act as "an unwarranted intrusion by the United States into the internal affairs of China".