Treaty of Shimonoseki

Treaty of Shimonoseki, 1895

Excerpt:

Article 2

China cedes to Japan in perpetuity and full sovereignty the following territories, together with all fortifications, arsenals, and public property thereon:—

. . . . .

(b) The island of Formosa, together with all islands appertaining or belonging to the said island of Formosa.

(c) The Pescadores Group, that is to say, all islands lying between the 119th and 120th degrees of longitude east of Greenwich and the 23rd and 24th degrees of north latitude.

Commentary

Certain ultra-nationalistic China supporters like to claim that, due to various rationale, the 1895 Treaty of Shimonoseki must be regarded as invalid, and therefore did not result in a territorial cession of Taiwan to China. However, an examination of the 1923 Washington Naval Treaty shows that even in the early 1920s, "Formosa and the Pescadores" were fully recognized by the international community as insular areas of Japan.

Washington Naval Treaty [ LINK ]

Hence, it is immediately seen that the claims of the above mentioned China supporters are groundless.

1895
Treaty of Shimonoseki
(full text)

[English version] https://www.twdefense.info/trust3/treaty-shimonoseki.html
[Chinese version] https://www.twdefense.info/trust3/treaty-shimonosekich.html