「一個中國」原則一直是戰後臺灣對外政策的基礎，也是威權政經體制的根本。透過臨時條款及其他戡亂法規，此「一個中國」原則合理化威權政府對於民間社會的支配，而且長期正當化不同省籍族群間政治權力分配的嚴重扭曲。 八○年代中期後，強大國際政經壓力與挑戰，一方面加速國內的威權轉型，特別是政治民主化，另方面也彰顯「一個中國」原則在國際層面的僵化與不理性。政治民主化調整政府與社會間關係，改善省籍族群間的權力分配，而且改變臺灣的對外政策。然而，其結果卻也導致「一個中國」原則在內外層面的模糊化。

　　　　　Taiwan's foreign policy was obviously founded by a "one-China" principle in the postwar period. The domestic authoritarian rule of the Nationalist government was also showing the same case when the "one-China" principle was embodied in the Temporary Provision for the Period of Communist Rebellion to justify the domination of the state over society and the distortion of power distribution among different ethnic groups. When the international isolation that had been caused by the rigid "one-China" principle in dealing with foreign affairs made Taiwan suffer from external challemges after the mid 1980s, the authoritarian rule was also forced to transform. As shown in the democratization processes, the state-society relations sustained by the Temporary Provision were adjusted and the distortion in power allocation was removed. In the meanwhile, Taiwan's foreign policy was also changed. The political democratization thus made the "one-China" principle be blurred at both domestic and international levels.