Since 1949, China's seat had belonged to Chiang Kai-shek's Republic of China, based in Taiwan, with American backing. As more newly independent states joined the UN, support for Beijing grew, and relations between Washington and Beijing were thawing. Resolution 2758, proposed by Albania, passed by 76 votes to 35, with 17 abstentions. The ROC delegation walked out before the vote. The US ambassador, George H. W. Bush, had tried to keep Taiwan in the General Assembly and failed.
The question of who should represent China at the UN had been debated every year since Mao Zedong's Communists won the civil war in 1949. The United States had kept Beijing out by persuading the Assembly to treat the matter as an "important question" requiring a two-thirds majority. By 1971 that strategy was failing, and in July President Richard Nixon's adviser Henry Kissinger had secretly visited Beijing, a trip announced to the world days later.
In October, Kissinger was again in Beijing as the Assembly debated. On October 25 the "important question" motion was defeated, and the Albanian resolution passed. It restored "all its rights" to the People's Republic and expelled "the representatives of Chiang Kai-shek". Some delegates applauded and danced in the aisles, a scene that angered many Americans. Before the vote, the ROC's foreign minister announced his country would leave.
Chinese diplomats took the seat in November. Taiwan has remained outside the UN since, and the resolution's precise meaning, particularly whether it settled Taiwan's status, remains a subject of dispute between Beijing, Taipei and Washington.
Key people: Chiang Kai-shek, Zhou Enlai, George H. W. Bush