Taiwan blasts China over 'distortion' of Resolution 2758 at U.N.

Taipei, Sept. 29 (CNA) Taiwan's government has condemned Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi's address at the United Nations General Assembly on Saturday for "distorting" a 1971 resolution that China uses as a basis for claiming Taiwan as part of its territory.

During the general debate of this year's General Assembly, Wang reiterated Beijing's stance that Resolution 2758, passed "with an overwhelming majority" during the General Assembly in 1971, "resolved once and for all the question of the representation of the whole of China, including Taiwan."

"There is no such thing as two Chinas or one China-one Taiwan. On this matter there is no gray zone," Wang said.

"Taiwan will eventually return to the embrace of the motherland. This is the overwhelming trend of history that no one can stop."

Resolution 2758 was adopted by the 26th U.N. General Assembly in 1971 to address the issue of China's representation at the world body.

It resulted in Taiwan, officially named the Republic of China (ROC), losing its seat at the U.N. to the People's Republic of China (PRC).

The resolution, however, did not mention Taiwan or the even the Republic of China by name.

Taiwan has since been excluded from membership in the United Nations and from participating in the international organization and its affiliated bodies.

In a statement Sunday, Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) reiterated that the ROC (Taiwan) is a sovereign and independent nation, and that neither Taiwan nor the PRC is subordinate to the other.

These are long-standing, objective, and internationally recognized facts, as well as the status quo across the Taiwan Strait, MOFA said in a statement.

Only the democratically elected government of Taiwan has the right to represent the Taiwanese people in the U.N. system and the international arena, it said.

MOFA again urged the PRC to stop misleading the international community on the topic, an appeal Taiwan has made repeatedly to no avail.

It also called on the international community to face the issue and offer timely rebuttals and clarifications as it believes Beijing is using the argument as a legal foundation for an armed invasion of Taiwan.

Also during Saturday's general debate, Francis Fonseca, the foreign affairs and foreign trade minister of Belize -- one of only two Central American countries that still formally recognize the ROC -- called on the U.N. to allow Taiwan's participation.

"Taiwan is a nation that espouses democracy, development and innovation. The challenges we are tackling as an international community require Taiwan's full inclusion and participation in the international system. Belize calls for this to be done immediately," he said.