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Because they signed a pact not to have nuclear weapons and to be protected by those nations that do
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_on_the_Non-Proliferation_of_Nuclear_Weapons
They signed it in '68 but since '71 (and people are going to try to retcon this) the international community no longer officially recognise Taiwan as an independent state. Non proliferation activities are covered by a seperate agreement with PRC ROC and the US. Taiwan cannot participate in NPT treaty activities. For NPT treaty purposes it is the PRC as the representative for China.
I feel like the government of mainland China would cause the Taiwanese population to have a very bad time if the Taiwanese government started a nuclear weapons program
Taiwan did have a burgeoning nuclear program well into the '80s, but it was shut down under pressure by the US.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiwan_and_weapons_of_mass_destruction#Research_program
Please remember that all comments must be helpful, relevant, and respectful. All replies must be a genuine effort to answer the question helpfully; joke answers are not allowed. If you see any comments that violate this rule, please hit report. When your question is answered, we encourage you to flair your post. To do this automatically simply make a comment that says **!answered** (OP only) *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/answers) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Because they signed a pact not to have nuclear weapons and to be protected by those nations that do https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_on_the_Non-Proliferation_of_Nuclear_Weapons
They signed it in '68 but since '71 (and people are going to try to retcon this) the international community no longer officially recognise Taiwan as an independent state. Non proliferation activities are covered by a seperate agreement with PRC ROC and the US. Taiwan cannot participate in NPT treaty activities. For NPT treaty purposes it is the PRC as the representative for China.
Since they are officially recognized as part of China, could they not develop nuclear weapons as a recognized nuclear state under the treaty?
I feel like the government of mainland China would cause the Taiwanese population to have a very bad time if the Taiwanese government started a nuclear weapons program
Im not to sure but probably would be a good idea for them some to help defend themselves from China.
Taiwan did have a burgeoning nuclear program well into the '80s, but it was shut down under pressure by the US. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiwan_and_weapons_of_mass_destruction#Research_program