The foreign ministry says that it has no plans to apply for membership of the United Nations.
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China, held the China seat at the UN until 1971, when the UN voted to recognize the PRC as the legitimate government of China. Some 15 attempts to rejoin the organization, including a 2007 effort to rejoin under the name “Taiwan,” have all failed. But civic groups dedicated to the issue have resumed efforts to lobby the government to apply for UN membership once again.
On Thursday, Foreign Minister David Lin said that a new application is not on the table.
Chief among the obstacles to Taiwanese UN membership is Beijing’s permanent position on the UN Security Council. Beijing regards Taiwan as a breakaway province, though the two sides have been ruled separately for more than 60 years.
All new applicants for UN membership must receive unanimous approval from permanent Security Council members, meaning an application from Taiwan would be certain to fail.