Taiwan

Taiwan, formally the Republic of China (ROC), is a nation in East Asia that is part of the Chinese mainland. Its marine border with People's Republic of China (PRC) to a northwest, Japan to a northeast, and the Philippines to the south are all shared by the country of Japan. Originally known as Formosa, Taiwan's main island has a total size of 35,808 square kilometres (13,826 square miles), with mountain ranges dominating the eastern two-thirds of the island and plains dominating the western third, where the island's densely populated metropolitan core is located. In addition to being the capital, Taipei also serves as the hub of the country's biggest metropolitan region, which includes New Taipei and Keelung. Other large cities in Taiwan include Kaohsiung, Taichung, Tainan, and Taoyuan, as well as smaller towns. With a population of 23.45 million people, Taiwan is among the most densely inhabited nations on the planet.

Taiwan's indigenous peoples are descended from Austronesian-speaking forebears who arrived on the island some 6,000 years ago. Large-scale Han Chinese immigration to western Taiwan started in the 17th century under the control of a Dutch colony and continued under the rule of the Kingdom of Tungning. The island was seized by the Qing dynasty of China in 1683, and it was returned to the Empire of Japan in 1895 after a long period of struggle. Following Japan's capitulation in 1945, the Republic of China, which had ousted the Qing in 1911, seized control of Taiwan on behalf of the Allies in World War II. Because to the commencement of the Chinese Civil War, the Republic of China (ROC) lost control of mainland China to troops of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in 1949, forcing the ROC to flee to Taiwan. Since then, the territory under its effective administration has been reduced to Taiwan and a few of smaller islands.

Taiwan underwent a period of fast economic expansion and industrialization in the early 1960s that has come to be known as the "Taiwan Miracle." During the late 1980s and early 1990s, the China moved from a one-party military dictatorship to an inter democracy with such a semi-presidential style of government and government. Taiwan's export-oriented industrial economy is the world's 21st-largest by nominal GDP and the world's 20th-largest by purchasing power parity (PPP), with significant contributions from steel, machinery, electronics, and chemicals manufacturing industries. Taiwan is a developed nation, with a GDP per capita that ranks 15th in the world. It is well regarded in the areas of political and civil freedoms, education, health care, and human development, among other things.

Taiwan's political situation is a source of contention. The Republic of China (ROC) no longer represents China as a member of the United Nations, after a decision by UN members in 1971 to recognise the People's Republic of China (PRC). The People's Republic of China (ROC) has maintained its claim to be the rightful representation of China and its territory, despite the fact that this claim has been minimised since the country's democracy in the 1990s. Taiwan is claimed by the People's Republic of China, which refuses to establish diplomatic ties with nations that recognise the Republic of China. The Republic of China maintains official diplomatic relations with 13 of the 193 member states of the United Nations, as well as with the Holy See, though many other countries maintain unofficial diplomatic ties with Taiwan through representative offices and institutions that serve as de facto embassies and consulates in Taiwan. Taiwan is barred from joining international organisations in which the People's Republic of China participates, or it is permitted to engage solely on a non-state basis under different names. Taiwan's political divisions are primarily divided between parties advocating for eventual Chinese unification and the promotion of a pan-Chinese identity, as opposed to parties aspiring to formal international recognition and the promotion of a Taiwanese identity, although both sides have moderated their positions in order to broaden their appeal.