Nixon confirmed that the Chinese Communists at first demanded that throughout the communique Taiwan be referred to as "a province of China." He said he had demurred, insisting that the U.S. side could refer to Taiwan only as "a part of China." Nixon's reasoning was that being dubbed "a province of China" would place Taiwan immediately in a subordinate position vis-a-vis the People's Republic of China; whereas being labeled "a part of China" would give Taiwan, despite its smaller size, a higher status vis-a-vis the mainland. I could tell by listening to Nixon that he was very pleased with himself on this matter.
Source: wiktionary