Chinese President Xi Jinping asked U.S. President Joe Biden last year to toughen the language the United States uses when discussing its position on Taiwanese independence, according to two U.S. officials familiar with the private conversation.

Below are some questions and answers about what is meant by the term "Taiwan independence":

WHAT IS TAIWAN'S HISTORY AND FORMAL NAME TODAY?

Formerly known as Formosa, the island has been home to indigenous people for thousands of years, before the Dutch and Spanish briefly ruled parts of it in the 1600s.

The Qing dynasty incorporated Taiwan as part of Fujian province in 1684 and only declared it a separate Chinese province in 1885.

Following the Qing's defeat in a war with Japan, it became a Japanese colony in 1895. In 1945, it was handed over to the Republic of China government at the end of World War Two.

In 1949 after being defeated by Mao Zedong's communist forces, the defeated Republic of China government fled to Taiwan, and Republic of China remains the island's formal name. Mao set up the People's Republic of China, and claimed it was the only legitimate Chinese government for the whole country, including Taiwan, as the successor state to the Republic of China.

WHAT IS TAIWAN'S INTERNATIONAL STATUS?

For decades, the Republic of China in Taipei also claimed to be the legitimate Chinese government, but in 1971 it was expelled from the United Nations in favour of the Beijing government. Currently only 12 countries maintain formal ties with Taipei, mostly small and poorer developing nations such as Belize and Tuvalu.

Most major Western countries and U.S. allies maintain close unofficial ties with Taiwan by recognising the Republic of China passport and having de facto embassies in each other's capitals.

The United States severed official ties with Taipei in 1979 but is bound by law to provide the island with the means to defend itself. The United States officially takes no position on Taiwan's sovereignty under Washington's "One China" policy.

China says it will not renounce the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control. Beijing has offered Taiwan a "one country, two systems" model similar to Hong Kong, though no major political party in Taiwan supports that.

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IS TAIWAN ALREADY AN INDEPENDENT COUNTRY?

Taiwan, whose people elect their own leaders and whose government controls a defined area of territory with its own military and passport, enjoys de facto independence even if that is not formally recognised by most countries.

Taiwan's government says the Republic of China is a sovereign state and that Beijing has no right to speak for or represent it given the People's Republic of China has no say in how it chooses its leaders and has never ruled Taiwan.

COULD TAIPEI DECLARE A "REPUBLIC OF TAIWAN"?

It would be very difficult and require first parliament approves a constitutional amendment and then a referendum, rather than a simple declaration by President Lai Ching-te.

At least 75% of lawmakers would need to pass that amendment, and the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and main opposition party the Kuomintang (KMT) currently have an equal number of seats.

The DPP, which has been in power since 2016, has not made an attempt to change the constitution. The KMT strongly opposes any attempts to change the name of Republic of China.

WHAT DOES TAIWAN'S PRESIDENT SAY ABOUT INDEPENDENCE?

China strongly detests Lai and calls him a "separatist". Before Lai was elected president he made comments about being a "practical worker for Taiwan independence". Lai maintains he simply meant Taiwan is already an independent country.

Since taking office Lai has said on several occasions that the Republic of China and People's Republic of China are "not subordinate to each other", which Beijing says means he believes the two are separate countries and so he is therefore pushing an independence narrative.

Lai says he is simply stating a fact and that in any case the Republic of China, founded after the overthrow of the last imperial dynasty in 1911, is an older state than the People's Republic of China which was only established in 1949.

DOES CHINA HAVE A LEGAL FRAMEWORK TO PREVENT FORMAL INDEPENDENCE?

In 2005, China's largely rubber-stamp parliament passed the Anti-Secession Law that gives the country the legal basis for military action against Taiwan if it secedes or seems about to, but the law is vague and does not give details.

There has been speculation in Taipei that China might use next year's 20th anniversary of the law to offer greater clarity. China has not confirmed that.

In 2022, Chinese state media raised the possibility of a "reunification law" to give Beijing a further legal framework to bring Taiwan under its control but there has been no further movement towards that to date.

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Senior US diplomat arrives in Taiwan as officials downplay Trump comments

A senior U.S. diplomat who helps manage ties with Taiwan has arrived in Taipei, the de facto U.S. embassy said on Tuesday, as Taiwanese officials sought to downplay Donald Trump's latest attacks of the island's crucial chip industry and defence needs.

The United States is Chinese-claimed Taiwan's most important international supporter and arms supplier despite the lack of formal diplomatic ties.

The American Institute in Taiwan, which manages the unofficial relationship, said its Washington Office Managing Director Ingrid Larson was visiting Taiwan for meetings from Oct. 28 to Nov. 1.

The trip is "part of the United States' strong commitment to Taiwan and to advance growing U.S.-Taiwan partnership", it said in a brief statement.

"While in Taiwan, she will discuss continued U.S.-Taiwan collaboration on issues of mutual interest such as regional security, mutually beneficial trade and investment, and people-to-people, educational, and cultural ties."

Trump, the Republican presidential candidate in the Nov.5 U.S. presidential election, has unnerved democratically governed Taiwan by saying both in July and again over the weekend that Taiwan should pay the United States for its defence and that it had taken American semiconductor business.

"Taiwan, they stole our chip business. They want us to protect and they want protection, they don't pay us money for the protection," Trump told "The Joe Rogan Experience" podcast over the weekend.

American Depositary Receipts for Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), the world's largest contact chipmaker and major supplier to companies like Nvidia, closed down 4.3% on Monday after Trump's comments.

On Tuesday, TSMC's Taipei-listed shares came off earlier lows to end down 1%, outperforming a 1.2% fall for the broader market.

Taiwan Premier Cho Jung-tai, asked on Tuesday about Trump's latest comments, struck a diplomatic tone, saying Taiwan-U.S. ties are based on being like-minded democratic allies.

"I also believe that the major U.S. political parties have an absolutely high degree of consensus on the understanding of the U.S.-Taiwan relationship" he said.

Economy Minister Kuo Jyh-huei told reporters he respected the remarks of "international friends".

"U.S. relations with Taiwan have developed steadily over time, and both parties share the same attitude toward Taiwan," Kuo said.

Taiwan does not have a formal defence treaty with the United States but it has billions of dollars of weapons on order and has repeatedly said it is committed to spending more on its military.

Taiwan's government rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims.

Taiwan received strong backing from Trump's 2017-2021 administration, including arms sales, which have continued under the government of U.S. President Joe Biden.

Trump spoke to then-Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen in 2016 shortly after he won the election, prompting anger in Beijing, as the United States does not officially recognise Taiwan's government, and glee in Taipei.

But with China's stepped up military activities around Taiwan, including a new round of war games earlier this month, Taipei is nervously watching what a new Trump administration would mean, especially given the tightness of opinion polls.

In the run up to the election over the past three months, two former senior Trump administration officials visited Taiwan - Kelly Craft and Nikki Haley who both served as his ambassadors to the United Nations.

"Trump is going to expect some things from our friends and allies across the world, particularly friends like Taiwan who are under threat. He will expect you to carry your weight as a security partner," Craft told a security forum in Taipei last month.

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US, Taiwan to begin talks on double taxation deal, says Treasury Department

The United States and Taiwan will begin negotiations in the coming weeks to work on an agreement to address double taxation issues, the U.S. Treasury Department said on Tuesday.

Both sides have said such an agreement will foster more investment, and Taipei has long pushed for it. The move was announced as a senior U.S. diplomat who helps manage ties with Taiwan arrived in Taipei on Tuesday.

Washington and Taipei do not have formal diplomatic relations, so the lack of a tax agreement means Taiwanese businesses and individuals are taxed on their income by both the U.S. and Taiwanese governments.

Taiwan is a major global supplier of the semiconductor chips essential to a wide range of consumer goods and military equipment. Washington has been keen to get Taiwanese chip companies to build factories in the United States.

The Treasury Department said the action builds on congressional initiatives and the administration will work with Congress on legislation to approve an agreement.

"A comprehensive tax agreement will provide critical benefits for both the United States and Taiwan," Treasury said. "In particular, this action will support the CHIPS and Science Act’s aims of strengthening the resilience of the semiconductor supply chain, creating jobs, and incentivizing investments in semiconductor manufacturing facilities across the United States.

"It will reduce double taxation barriers for further investment by Taiwan into the United States, and vice versa, particularly for the small and medium-sized enterprises that are crucial to a complete semiconductor ecosystem."

Washington has been moving toward a tax agreement with Taiwan for months. But legislation that would have laid the groundwork for a bilateral tax agreement with the island failed to pass the Senate over the summer.

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