MOFA strongly condemns and refutes Chinese Foreign Ministry’s false claims regarding Taiwan’s participation in WTO

MOFA strongly condemns and refutes Chinese Foreign Ministry's false claims regarding Taiwan's participation in WTO

• Date：2026-03-25
• Data Source：Department of North American Affairs

March 25, 2026

No. 114

At a press conference on March 24, the Chinese Foreign Ministry attempted to mislead the international community and suppress Taiwan's international participation by erroneously claiming that the so-called "one China principle" was a political prerequisite for Taiwan's participation in the World Trade Organization (WTO). The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) expresses its strongest condemnation and categorically refutes this blatantly false and distorted narrative.

In accordance with Article XII of the Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization, Taiwan acceded to the WTO as a fully autonomous separate customs territory not subordinate to any other member. As such, Taiwan enjoys equal and complete rights under the WTO framework. There is absolutely no basis for China's fallacious unilateral claim that Taiwan's membership is predicated on the so-called "one China principle" as a political prerequisite.

MOFA reiterates that the Republic of China (Taiwan) is a sovereign and independent country; that neither the ROC (Taiwan) nor the People's Republic of China (PRC) is subordinate to the other; and that the PRC has never governed Taiwan. These objective facts are the internationally recognized status quo. Only the democratically elected government of Taiwan can represent the 23 million people of Taiwan in multilateral organizations and at international events. (E)