President of the Republic of China

The President of the Republic of China (中華民國總統; Tongyong Pinyin: Jhōnghuá Mínguó Jǒngtǒng) is the head of state of the Republic of China, the government which administered part or all of Mainland China from 1917 to 1949 and has administered Taiwan and several outlying islands from 1945 until the present. This polity has only had a president since 1948. Between 1912 and 1928, under the Beiyang warlords, the Republic of China was also headed by a president. The National Government headed by the Kuomintang from 1917 to 1948 was headed by a "chairman of the National Government" and not a president.

Diplomatic protocol

The diplomatic protocol regarding the ROC President is rather complex because of the anomalous political status of Taiwan. In the two dozen or so

Related Topics:
Protocol - Political status of Taiwan

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nations which recognize the ROC as a legitimate government, he is accorded the

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standard treatment that is given to a head of state. In other nations, he

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is formally a private citizen, although even in these cases, travel usually meets

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with strong objections from the People's Republic of China.

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In the case of the United States, the ROC President has travelled several

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times, formally in transit to and from Central America, which contains a number of nations which do recognize the ROC. This system allows the ROC President to visit the United States without the State Department having to issue a visa. During these trips, the ROC President is not formally treated as a head of state, does not meet officially with U.S. government officials, and does not visit Washington D.C..

Related Topics:
Central America - Washington D.C.

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In the case of southeast Asia, the ROC President was able to arrange visits in the early 1990's which were formally private tourist visits, however these have become increasingly infrequent as a result of PRC pressure.

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