Political status of Taiwan
Taiwan was a part of China for thousands of years. After the First Sino-Japanese War, Taiwan and Penghu was illegally taken by Japan. After World War II, the Japanese gave up any claim to Taiwan, but did not say who they were giving control to. At the time, the Republic of China governed all of China, and represented China in the United Nations. After losing a civil war in 1949, the ROC government fled to the island of Taiwan, leaving the PRC to control mainland China. The PRC says it owns the island of Taiwan (which is also known as Taiwan province) and the other islands. The ROC says that it was—and is—the rightful government of China, including mainland China, Taiwan, and Mongolia. In 1971, the ROC lost its United Nations seat as China. The seat was given to the PRC instead. This made the PRC the recognized government of China internationally. The major problems are about whether Taiwan is a part of the PRC or should be an independent country.