Six Assurances

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The Six Assurances are six key foreign policy principles of the United States regarding

the People's Republic of China in 1982. They were intended to reassure both Taiwan and the United States Congress
that the US would continue to support Taiwan even if it had earlier cut formal diplomatic relations.

The assurances were originally proposed by the then

Republic of China on Taiwan during negotiations between the U.S. and the People's Republic of China.[citation needed] The U.S. Reagan administration
agreed to the assurances and informed the United States Congress of them in July 1982.

Today, the Six Assurances are part of semiformal guidelines used in conducting

US House of Representatives and the Senate
in non-binding resolutions, upgrading their status to formal but not directly enforceable.

Text

The United States House of Representatives passed a concurrent resolution on May 16, 2016, giving the first formal wording for the Six Assurances by more or less directly adopting how the former Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs John H. Holdridge expressed them in 1982 (which was delivered to Taiwan's President Chiang Ching-kuo by then-Director of the American Institute in Taiwan James R. Lilley):[1]

  1. “* * * [W]e did not agree to set a date certain for ending arms sales to Taiwan”;
  2. “* * * [W]e see no mediation role for the United States” between Taiwan and the PRC;
  3. “* * *[N]or will we attempt to exert pressure on Taiwan to enter into negotiations with the PRC”;
  4. “* * * [T]here has been no change in our longstanding position on the issue of sovereignty over Taiwan”;
  5. “We have no plans to seek” revisions to the Taiwan Relations Act; and
  6. The
    arms sales to Taiwan
    ”.

A similar resolution passed the Senate on July 6, 2016.[2]

In the first version, which was introduced to Congress by Rep. Steve Chabot on October 28, 2015, the Six Assurances were proposed to be:[3]

  1. The United States would not set a date for termination of arms sales to Taiwan;
  2. The United States would not alter the terms of the Taiwan Relations Act;
  3. The United States would not consult with China in advance before making decisions about United States arms sales to Taiwan;
  4. The United States would not mediate between Taiwan and China;
  5. The United States would not alter its position about the sovereignty of Taiwan which was, that the question was one to be decided peacefully by the Chinese themselves, and would not pressure Taiwan to enter into negotiations with China; and
  6. The United States would not formally recognize Chinese sovereignty over Taiwan.

Declassified cables, sent in 1982 from the State Department, detail the Six Assurances:[4]

  1. The United States has not agreed to set a date for ending arms sales to Taiwan.
  2. The United States has not agreed to consult with the PRC on arms sales to Taiwan.
  3. The United States will not play a mediation role between Taipei and Beijing.
  4. The United States has not agreed to revise the Taiwan Relations Act.
  5. The United States has not altered its position regarding sovereignty over Taiwan.
  6. The United States will not exert pressure on Taiwan to enter into negotiations with the PRC.[5]

Reaffirmation

The

State Department has reaffirmed the Six Assurances repeatedly.[6]

On May 19, 2016, one day before

United States–Taiwan relations.[7][8][9]

The Republican Party Platform of the

diesel submarines, and full participation in the World Health Organization, International Civil Aviation Organization, and other multilateral institutions."[10]

The Asia Reassurance Initiative Act (

Pub. L.Tooltip Public Law (United States) 115–409 (text) (PDF)) states that it is the policy of the U.S. to enforce commitments to Taiwan consistent with the Six Assurances.[11] As of September 2018, the Donald Trump administration "has stated that the U.S.-Taiwan relationship is also 'guided' by [the] 'Six Assurances'".[12]

In November 2020 U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stated “Taiwan has not been a part of China, and that was recognized with the work that the Reagan administration did to lay out the policies that the United States has adhered to now for three and a half decades, and done so under both administrations.” which was seen as invoking clause 5.[13]

The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 reconfirmed the Taiwan Relations Act (TRA) and the Six Assurances as the foundation for US-Taiwan relations.[14]

On August 2, 2022, Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, in a statement from a visit to Taiwan, made reference to the United States' continuing support of the TRA, Three Communiqués, and the Six Assurances.[15]

See also

References

  1. ^ "H.Con.Res.88 - Reaffirming the Taiwan Relations Act and the Six Assurances as cornerstones of United States-Taiwan relations". congress.gov. May 16, 2016. Retrieved May 19, 2016.
  2. ^ "S.Con.Res.38 - A concurrent resolution reaffirming the Taiwan Relations Act and the Six Assurances as cornerstones of United States-Taiwan relations". congress.gov. May 16, 2016. Retrieved July 6, 2016.
  3. ^ "H.Con.Res.88 - Reaffirming the Taiwan Relations Act and the Six Assurances as the cornerstone of United States-Taiwan relations". October 28, 2015. Retrieved April 22, 2016.
  4. ^ Declassified Cables: Taiwan Arms Sales & Six Assurances (1982), American Institute in Taiwan
  5. ^ Hartman, Leigh (2 September 2020). "U.S. reaffirms importance of Taiwan relationship". ShareAmerica. US State Department. Retrieved 2 September 2020. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  6. U.S. Department of State
    , February 14, 2003
  7. ^ Menendez, Rubio: "Six Assurances" Continued Foundation of U.S.-Taiwan Relations, Senator Bob Menendez, May 19, 2016
  8. ^ Rubio, Menendez: ‘Six Assurances’ Continued Foundation Of U.S.-Taiwan Relations, Senator Marco Rubio, May 19, 2016
  9. ^ S.Con.Res.38 - A concurrent resolution reaffirming the Taiwan Relations Act and the Six Assurances as cornerstones of United States-Taiwan relations., Congress.gov, May 19, 2016
  10. ^ "The 2016 Republican Party Platform" (PDF). Republican National Committee. 18 July 2016. p. 48. Retrieved 30 September 2019.
  11. Taiwan Today
    . 2 January 2019. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
  12. ^ Taiwan: Select Political and Security Issues, Congressional Research Service, September 17, 2018
  13. ^ van der Wees, Gerrit. "Has Taiwan Always Been Part of China?". thediplomat.com. The Diplomat. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  14. ^ Chin-yeh, Chiang; Huang, Frances (4 December 2020). "U.S. Congress proposes medical partnership with Taiwan". focustaiwan.tw. Focus Taiwan. Retrieved 4 December 2020.
  15. ^ Pelosi, Nancy. "Pelosi, Congressional Delegation Statement on Visit to Taiwan". speaker.gov. Retrieved 3 August 2022.

External links

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