The Republic of China (ROC), commonly known as Taiwan, is a state in East Asia comprising the island of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu, and other minor islands, which are located off the east coast of mainland China. Neighboring states include the People’s Republic of China (PRC) to the west, Japan to the north-east, and the Republic of the Philippines to the south.

The founding of the Republic of China began on 10 October 1911 as a result of the Wuchang Uprising, but was not formally established until 1 January 1912. The ROC had once encompassed mainland China and Outer Mongolia. At the end of World War II, with the surrender of Japan, the Republic of China took control of the island groups of Taiwan and Penghu from the Japanese Empire. With the end of the world war, the government drafted the Constitution of the Republic of China, which was adopted on 25 December 1947. When the Chinese Nationalist Party (Kuomintang, KMT), the then leading party of the ROC, lost mainland China in the Chinese Civil War to the Communist Party of China (CPC) in 1949, the central government relocated to Taiwan, establishing Taipei as its provisional capital.[11] Despite being forced out of mainland China, Chiang Kai-shek, the Nationalist leader, declared that the ROC was still the legitimate government of China and Outer Mongolia.[12][neutrality is disputed] On the mainland, the victorious Communist party founded the People’s Republic of China. The Taiwan Area became the extent of the Republic of China’s jurisdiction.

During the early Cold War the ROC was recognized by many Western nations and the United Nations as the sole legitimate government of China. It was a founding member of the United Nations[13] and one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council until 1971, when it was replaced by the PRC.

The PRC regards the ROC as an illegitimate state; it seeks to unify Taiwan with mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau and is ready to use force if necessary. This tension between the two states colors most the political life in Taiwan, and any attempt at declaring formal independence is met with threats from the PRC.[14] The PRC refuses to have diplomatic relations with countries which recognize the Republic of China and vice versa by the ROC; thus as of 2010, only 23 have formal diplomatic relations with the ROC.

Initially a single-party state, the Republic of China evolved into a democratic state during the 1980s without widespread conflict. It has a semi-presidential system and universal suffrage. The President of the Republic of China serves as the head of state and commander-in-chief of the Republic of China Armed Forces. The Legislative Yuan serves as the legislative body. The ROC is a member of the WTO and APEC. It is an industrialized developed country and one of the Four Asian Tigers. The 26th-largest economy in the world;[15], its advanced technology industry plays a key role in the global economy. The ROC is ranked high in terms of freedom of the press, health care, public education, and economic freedom.

[Taipei]