Consular convention Between the People's Republic of China and The United States of America by the United States Senate is an account of the convention that resulted in The Sino-American Mutual Defense Treaty (SAMDT), formally the Mutual Defense Treaty between the United States of America and the Republic of China. This document was a defense pact signed between the United States and the Republic of China (Taiwan) effective from 1955 to 1980. It was intended to defend the island of Taiwan from invasion by the People's Republic of China.