Prior to 1979, the
Republic of China (Taiwan) was represented in Washington by its embassy, occupying the building now used by
Haiti. After the transfer of recognition to the People's Republic of China, the Republic of China was no longer recognized by the United States, and therefore no longer entitled to use the former embassy, with its diplomatic mission replaced by the current Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office. The mission serves as the office of the Coordination Council for North American Affairs (CCNAA) in Washington, D.C., established in 1979 as the counterpart to the American Institute in Taiwan, after the United States established diplomatic relations with the
People's Republic of China. The council was renamed
Taiwan Council for U.S. Affairs in 2019. (now
Embassy of Haiti) In 1994, as a result of the
Clinton Administration's Taiwan Policy Review, the name of the CCNAA office in Washington, D.C. (which functioned as an
embassy) was changed to
Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office (
TECRO). Similarly, the names of the twelve other CCNAA offices (which functioned as
consulates) were changed to
Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (
TECO). In September 2020, the
US Ambassador to the United Nations Kelly Craft met with Amb. James K.J. Lee, Director-General of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York, who was secretary-general in
Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs until July, for lunch in New York City in what was the first meeting between a top Taiwan official and a United States ambassador to the United Nations. Craft said she and Lee discussed ways the US can help Taiwan become more engaged within the U.N. ==List of Representatives==