{{Country
|name =Republic of China(Taiwan)<refname=MOFA>See ''[http://yearbookmultilingual.multimedia.eymofa.gov.tw/enebookweb/2015yearbookweb_UTF-8/indexMOFA/glance2019-2020/English.html The Republic of China Yearbook 2015pdf 2019-2020 Taiwan at a glance]'', Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Republic of China (Taiwan). This is Taipei's flagship English-language publication. It has been issued annually since 1949. When The table on the KMT was out inside cover says, "Official name: Republic of power from 2003 to 2007China (Taiwan)." Under the Nationalists, it used the title ''Taiwan Yearbook''official name of the country was simply "Republic of China."</ref><br />''Zhōnghuá Mínguó''<br />中華民國
|map =Taiwanmap.jpg
|map2 =Taiwan location.png
|pm-raw =
|area =13,974 sq mi
|pop =2324,340000,136000 (2020)|pop-basis =2013|gdp = $575,000,000,000 (2020)
|gdp-year =
|gdp-pc = $23,958
|currency =New Taiwan dollar
|idd =
|tld =
}}
'''Taiwan''', also '''Formosa''', is an island state and a democracy in East Asia. The population was 23.3 57 million in 2013 2017 and the dominant language is Chinese. <ref name=MOFA2 /> In 2012, it had the 20th largest economy in the world, according to the [[International Monetary Fund]].<ref>Taiwan's GDP for 2012 was $902 billion (PPP).</ref> Neighboring states include China to the west, Japan to the east and northeast, and the Philippines to the south. The capital is [[Taipei]] in the north of the island. Known for its natural beauty, the country is 245 miles long and 89 miles wide, with a steep central mountain range and plains on the west coast.
The Dutch East India Company had a trading post on Taiwan in the seventeenth century. The island was acquired by Japan in 1895 as a result of the Sino-Japanese War. It was returned to China in 1945 at the end of World War II. The current division between Taiwan and the mainland originated in 1949, when the [[Chinese Nationalist Party]], or KMT, was defeated by the communists in the Chinese Civil War, fled the mainland, and relocated to Taiwan.
The [[United Nations]] and most non-communist states continued to recognize the "Nationalist regime China" in Taiwan as the legitimate government of China until 1971. At this time, the Nationalists were expelled from the U.N. and China's seat was reassigned to Beijing. The communist government in Beijing claims Taiwan as a renegade province. President Jimmy Carter withdrew U.S. recognition of Taiwan in 1979, and Congress passed the Taiwan Relations Act to regulate relations between the two countries.
Taiwan was under marital law from 1948 until 1987. During this period, Taiwan was a one-party state and opposition political activity was not permitted. The country held its first democratic presidential election in 1996. A presidential election in January 2016 was won by Tsai Ing-wen of the Democratic Progressive Party. Her party, strongly opposed by China, stresses "Taiwanization" as opposed to Chinese identity.The Western media often accuses Beijing of treating Taiwan as a "renegade province," although the Chinese media denies this.<ref>"The mainland has never called Taiwan a "renegade province" and has repeatedly stressed that the cross-straits negotiation will not be one between the central government and a local government, it will be an equal negotiation under the One-China principle." ("[http://en.people.cn/english/200005/16/eng20000516_40946.html Taiwan's New Leader Urged to Recognize One-China Principle]", ''People's Daily'', May 17, 2000.)</ref>
==People==
|p=Táiwān
|w=Tai-wan
}}The Beijing dialect of Chinese, called ''Guóyǔ'' locally, is Taiwan's official language and medium of instructionis Chinese. However, most The Taiwanese form of the spoken language, known as ''Guóyǔ'' (especially native Taiwanesenational language) speak one of , does not differ significantly from the southern Fujianese languages''Pǔtōnghuà'' (common speech) spoken on the mainland. Taiwan uses the "unsimplified" characters of pre-communist China, so its writing system is distinct. Most Taiwanese speak Minnan, also known as or Taiwanese , as their first language. Minnan is also spoken in southern Fujian. Recently there has been a growing use of Taiwanese in the broadcast media. The Hakka, who are concentrated in several counties throughout Taiwan, have their own distinct language. Minnan, Hakka, and Mandarin are members of the Chinese language family. As a result of more than half a century of Japanese rule, many older people can also speak Japanese. In From 2002to 2008, Taiwan authorities announced adoption Tongyu Pinyin ("general-use spelling of sounds") was Taiwan's official Romanization system. This system is a variant of the pinyin Hanyu Pinyin system of romanization used on the mainland. Taiwan adopted Hanyu Pinyin officially in China2008. MinnanIn practice, Hakka, and Mandarin are all part Taiwanese use of the Chinese language family. Japanese is notLatin alphabet remains chaotic.
====Religion====
===Principal government officials===
*President—Ma YingPresident—Tsai Ing-jeouwen*Vice President—Wu DenPresident—Chen Chien-yihjen*Premier—Mao Chi-kuoPremier—Lai Ching‑te
*Vice Premier--
*Secretary-General, Executive Yuan—Hsieh HsiangYuan—Chuo Rung-chuantai
*Minister of the Interior—Liai Liou-yi
*Minister of Foreign Affairs—Francisco H. L. Lin
===Relations with China===
Despite differences between Taiwan and China, contact between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait has grown significantly over the past decade. Taiwan has continued to relax restrictions on unofficial contacts with China, and cross-strait interaction has mushroomed. In 2001, Taiwan formally allowed the "three mini-links" (direct trade, travel, and postal links) from Quemoy and Matsu Islands to Fujian Province and permitted direct cross-strait trade in February 2002. Taiwan authorities permitted residents of Penghu Islands starting in 2007, to begin visiting mainland China via Quemoy and Matsu. Cross-strait trade has grown rapidly over the past 10 years. China is Taiwan's largest trading partner, and Taiwan is China's fifth largest. In December 2019, Taiwan passed a law to counter Chinese interference in the country's internal politics.<ref>Lee, Yimou; Hamacher, Fabian (December 31, 2019). [https://www.reuters.com/article/us-taiwan-lawmaking/taiwan-passes-law-to-combat-chinese-influence-on-politics-idUSKBN1YZ0F6 Taiwan passes law to combat Chinese influence on politics]. ''Reuters''. Retrieved December 31, 2019.</ref>
===Relations with the United States===
==Economy==
Through over five decades of hard work and sound economic management, Taiwan has transformed itself from an underdeveloped, agricultural island to an economic power that is a leading producer of high-technology goods. In the 1960s, foreign investment in Taiwan helped introduce modern, labor-intensive technology to the island, and Taiwan became a major exporter of labor-intensive products. In the 1980s, focus shifted toward increasingly sophisticated, capital-intensive and technology-intensive products for export and toward developing the service sector. At the same time, the appreciation of the New Taiwan dollar, rising labor costs, and increasing environmental consciousness in Taiwan caused many labor-intensive industries, such as shoe manufacturing, to move to China and Southeast Asia. Taiwan has transformed itself from a recipient of U.S. aid in the 1950s and early 1960s to an aid donor and major foreign investor, especially in Asia. Taiwan is now a creditor economy, holding the world's fourth-largest stock of foreign exchange reserves ($273 billion as of 2007). Although Taiwan enjoyed sustained economic growth, full employment, and low inflation for many years, in 2001, Taiwan joined other regional economies in its first recession since 1949. The economy began to recover in 2002, but the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) slowed growth to 3.5 percent in 2003. The world economic upturn drove growth in 2004 to 6.2 percent. However, slower world growth in 2005, higher energy prices and interest rates, and excess inventory dragged 2005 growth to 4.2 percent. Continued expansion of exports pushed up Taiwan's economic growth to 5.7 percent in 2007.
*GDP (200716/04/2020): US$383 billion586 Billion<ref>https://usdebtclock.org/world-debt-clock.html</ref> National Debt (16/04/2020): US$243 Billion
*Real annual growth rate (2007): 4.6 5.7 percent.
*Per capita GDP (2007): $16,790.
====Agriculture====
Although only about one-quarter of Taiwan's land area is arable, virtually all farmland is intensely cultivated, with some areas suitable for two and even three crops a year. However, increases in agricultural production have been much slower than industrial growth. Agriculture only comprises about 1.4 percent of Taiwan's GDP. Taiwan's main crops are rice, sugarcane, fruit, and vegetables. While largely self-sufficient in rice production, Taiwan imports large amounts of wheat, corn, and soybeans, mostly from the United States. Poultry and pork production are mainstays of the livestock sector and the major demand drivers for imported corn and soybeans. Rising standards of living have led to increased demand for a wide variety of high-quality food products, much of it imported. Overall, U.S. agricultural and food products account for more than 30 percent of Taiwan's agricultural import demand. U.S. food and agricultural exports total about $2.5 billion annually, making Taiwan the United States' sixth-largest agricultural export destination. Taiwan's agricultural exports include frozen fish, aquaculture and sea products, canned and frozen vegetables, and grain products. Taiwan's imports of agricultural products have increased since its WTO accession in 2002, and it is slowly liberalizing previously protected agricultural markets.
==History==
Taiwan has developed steadily into a major international trading power with $466 billion in two-way trade (2007). Taiwan's accession to the World Trade Organization in 2002 has expanded its trade opportunities and further strengthened its standing in the global economy. Tremendous prosperity on the island has been accompanied by economic and social stability. Chiang Kai-shek's successor, his son Chiang Ching-kuo, began to liberalize Taiwan's political system, a process that continued when President Lee Teng-hui took office in 1988. The direct election of Lee Teng-hui as president in 1996 was followed by opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) candidate Chen Shui-bian's election victory in 2000. Chen was re-elected in 2004 in a tightly contested election. KMT's Ma Ying-jeou won the 2008 presidential election by a substantial majority and was inaugurated in 2008.
President [[Tsai Ing-wen]], a member of the pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party who won election in 2016, won re-election in 2020.<ref>Multiple references:
*Fu, Eva (January 11, 2020). [https://www.theepochtimes.com/taiwan-president-tsai-ing-wen-re-elected-in-landslide-victory_3200909.html Taiwan President Wins Re-election by Landslide in Firm Rebuke to Beijing]. ''The Epoch Times''. Retrieved January 11, 2020.
*Moreno, J. Edward (January 11, 2020). [https://thehill.com/policy/international/477833-taiwan-sends-message-to-beijing-with-presidents-reelection Taiwan sends message to Beijing with president's reelection]. ''The Hill''. Retrieved January 11, 2020.
*Kurtenbach, Elaine; Lai, Johnson (January 11, 2020). [https://apnews.com/623049bbc54ad3601f660acaf962d8d6 Taiwan’s leader reelected as voters back tough China stance]. ''Associated Press''. Retrieved January 11, 2020.
*Lee, Yimou; Shen, Meg (January 10, 2020). [https://www.reuters.com/article/us-taiwan-election/taiwan-president-wins-landslide-victory-in-stark-rebuke-to-china-idUSKBN1ZA009 Taiwan president wins landslide victory in stark rebuke to China]. ''Reuters''. Retrieved January 11, 2020.
*Wong, Chun Han; Kazer, William; Wang, Joyu (January 11, 2020). [https://www.wsj.com/articles/taiwans-president-incumbent-who-challenged-china-set-to-win-re-election-11578748281 Taiwanese President Who Challenged China Claims Re-Election Victory]. ''The Wall Street Journal''. Retrieved January 11, 2020.
See also:
*Fu, Eva (January 11, 2020). [https://www.theepochtimes.com/taiwan-election-results-a-repudiation-of-china-experts-say_3201146.html Taiwan Election Results a ‘Repudiation of China,’ Experts Say]. ''The Epoch Times''. Retrieved January 11, 2020.
*Moritsugu, Ken (January 12, 2020). [https://apnews.com/d2580ddd2f97016adf9a24f80b860ded AP Analysis: Taiwan vote signals growing divide with China]. ''Associated Press''. Retrieved January 12, 2020.
*Kurtenbach, Elaine (January 12, 2020). [https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2020/jan/12/china-democracy-activists-cheered-by-taiwan-electi/ China democracy activists cheered by Taiwan election results]. ''The Washington Times'' (from the ''Associated Press''). Retrieved January 12, 2020.
*Kraychik, Robert (January 12, 2020). [https://www.breitbart.com/radio/2020/01/12/rick-fisher-taiwans-tsais-re-election-rebuke-beijing-boost-freedom-against-communists/ Rick Fisher on Taiwan’s Tsai’s Re-election: A Rebuke to Beijing, Boost for Freedom Against Communists]. ''Breitbart News''. Retrieved January 13, 2020.</ref>
==Further reading==