On October 1, 1949, at the inauguration of the PRC, the Chinese government declared, "This 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 Province 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 a 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 more than 160 countries by the end of 2004.