On October 1, 1949, at the inauguration of the PRC, the Chinese
government declared, òThis government is the sole legitimate
government representing the whole people of the People's Republic
of China. It is ready to establish diplomatic relations with any
foreign government willing to observe the principles of equality,
mutual benefit, and respect for each other's territorial integrity
and sovereignty.
There is only one China in the world. Taiwan is an integral part
of the territory of the PRC. Any nation that intends to have
diplomatic relations with China must recognize the PRC government
as the sole legitimate government of China and sever diplomatic
ties with the Taiwan authorities. China firmly opposes any actions
aimed at creating "Taiwan independence," "two Chinas" or "one
China, one Taiwan," and will not tolerate any country that has
established formal diplomatic relations with China to establish any
official relations of any kind with Taiwan authorities.
In line with these principles, China had established diplomatic
relations with 166 countries by the end of 2005.?