An amendment forbidding the Department of Defense (DOD) to use any maps showing Taiwan as part of China was adopted during House negotiations over the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024. Rep. Tom Tiffany (R-Wisc.) introduced the "honest maps" amendment.
When asked about Taiwan's relationship with Communist China, Tiffany stated on July 13 that "all of us know that Taiwan is not - and has never been" a part of Communist China. The opposite is certainly untrue. As a result of this change, all official maps will have to clearly show that "China is China, and Taiwan is Taiwan."
The new section is titled SEC. 1310. LIMITATION ON CERTAIN MAPS. No part of the monies appropriated by this Act may be used for the production, acquisition, or exhibition of any map that includes the islands of Taiwan, Kinmen, Matsu, Penghu, Wuciou, Green Island, or Orchid Island within the boundaries of the People's Republic of China.
There are no diplomatic ties between the United States and Taiwan, although there is "a robust unofficial relationship," as stated by the Department of State (DOS). According to a Department of State fact sheet from May of 2022, the two nations "share similar values, deep commercial and economic links, and strong people-to-people ties, which form the bedrock of our friendship and serve as the impetus for expanding U.S. engagement with Taiwan."
The Department of State claims in its website that American policy toward Taiwan has remained stable "across decades and administrations. "The 1979 Taiwan Relations Act, three U.S.-Chinese Joint Communiqués, and the 1982 Six Assurances all call for the United States to adhere to a "one China policy," which it has done for a long time, as stated in the fact sheet. The U.S. does not advocate independence for Taiwan, opposes unilateral changes to the status quo, and wants issues to "be resolved by peaceful means," according to the fact sheet. According to the Department of State, the United States will provide defense articles and services as necessary "to enable Taiwan to maintain a sufficient self-defense capability -- and maintains our capacity to resist any resort to force or other forms of coercion that would jeopardize the security, or the social or economic system of Taiwan."
In July of 2021, Tiffany proposed a change quite similar to the one that was eventually passed. On July 29, 2021, Tiffany was quoted in an issue of Newsweek as calling the amendment "a commonsense measure."
"Taiwan has never been a part of Communist China," Tiffany told Newsweek. "Taiwanese citizens make their own decisions regarding government, armed forces, foreign policy, and commercial agreements. Taiwan is fully autonomous and a democracy by any standard. Any assertions to the contrary are, of course, bogus."
