For decades, Taiwan’s passport didn’t say “Taiwan” at all. It said something else: the Republic of China. But if Taiwan has called itself China, who gets to be the “real” China?

This video traces the evolution of Taiwan’s identity through one simple object: its passport. From the booting of the Republic of China from the United Nations, to President Richard Nixon’s historic visit to Communist China in 1972, to the 2003 addition of the word “Taiwan” to the Republic of China passport, the story of “One China” is less about geography and more about history, power, and shifting global alliances. 

As Beijing becomes more financially and politically powerful on today’s global stage, is it possible for Taiwan to hold onto its autonomy? And what is the US’s role in the triangulation between Beijing and Taipei, especially as Taiwan’s main weapons dealer?

Read more about Taiwan and the concept of “One China”:

• The Many “One Chinas”: Multiple Approaches to Taiwan and China: https://carnegieendowment.org/research/2023/02/the-many-one-chinas-multiple-approaches-to-taiwan-and-china?lang=en
• The Collapse of One China: https://www.csis.org/analysis/collapse-one-china
• Do the Cairo and Potsdam Declarations “restore” Taiwan to China?: https://www.rfa.org/english/news/afcl/fact-check-potsdam-05082023093502.html
• Tracking China’s Increased Military Activities in the Indo-Pacific in 2025: https://chinapower.csis.org/china-increased-military-activities-indo-pacific-2025/
• Most people in Taiwan see themselves as primarily Taiwanese; few say they’re primarily Chinese: https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2024/01/16/most-people-in-taiwan-see-themselves-as-primarily-taiwanese-few-say-theyre-primarily-chinese/
• How Taiwan came to dominate the global chip industry: https://theconversation.com/how-taiwan-came-to-dominate-the-global-chip-industry-276939
• U.S. Military Support for Taiwan in Five Charts: https://www.cfr.org/articles/us-military-support-taiwan-five-charts
• Americans and Taiwanese Favor the Status Quo: https://globalaffairs.org/research/public-opinion-survey/americans-and-taiwanese-favor-status-quo

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