The International Community Has Once Again Rejected the Participation of Taiwan Region in the World Health Assembly
By H.E. Mr. Bo Shen, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
On May 18, the General Committee and the Plenary Session of the 79th World Health Assembly (WHA) respectively decided to reject the so-called proposal of “inviting Taiwan to participate in the WHA as an observer” submitted by certain countries. This marks the 10th consecutive year that the WHA has rejected such a proposal. This outcome once again demonstrates that the one-China principle is a prevailing consensus of the international community and a fundamental principle that the World Health Organization must uphold. Any attempt to challenge this principle under the pretext of public health issues will receive no support from the international community.
Recently, the authorities of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and a small number of countries have continuously hyped up the so-called issue of “Taiwan’s participation in international organizations” and even claimed that “Taiwan is excluded from the global health system.” Although such statements are made under the guise of public health and humanitarian concerns, their true purpose is to politicize health issues and use them as a pretext to challenge United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758 and the post-war international order.
There is but one China in the world. Taiwan is an inalienable part of China’s territory, and the government of the People’s Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China. This is both a historical fact and a principle of international law. The Taiwan question has a clear historical background and legal context. In 1895, Japan forcibly occupied Taiwan after invading China. During World War II, the Cairo Declaration and the Potsdam Proclamation clearly stipulated that all territories Japan had stolen from China should be restored to China. In 1945, China resumed the exercise of sovereignty over Taiwan. In 1971, the United Nations General Assembly adopted Resolution 2758, restoring all lawful rights of the People’s Republic of China in the United Nations and explicitly resolving the question of the representation of the whole of China, including Taiwan, in the UN system.
This resolution not only confirmed the lawful seat of the Government of the People’s Republic of China within the United Nations system, but also established an indisputable fact: Taiwan is not a country, and China has only one seat in the United Nations. Therefore, the World Health Organization, as a specialized agency of the United Nations, must abide by United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758 and World Health Assembly Resolution WHA25.1. The participation of China’s Taiwan region in activities of international organizations must be handled in accordance with the one-China principle. This is an established international norm, rather than what some describe as a “unilateral demand” by China.
In the past, China’s Taiwan region participated in the World Health Assembly under the name “Chinese Taipei.” This was not a so-called “right granted to Taiwan by the international community,” but rather a special arrangement reached through cross-Strait consultations on the basis that both sides adhered to the one-China principle. Since 2016, the DPP authorities have refused to recognize the 1992 Consensus, which embodies the one-China principle, and have stubbornly adhered to the separatist position of “Taiwan independence,” thereby causing this arrangement to lose its political foundation. The responsibility lies entirely with the DPP authorities themselves.
More importantly, the claim that “Taiwan is excluded from the global health system” is completely inconsistent with the facts. The Chinese central government attaches great importance to the health and well-being of compatriots in Taiwan. Provided that the one-China principle is upheld, channels for information and technical exchanges between China’s Taiwan region and the World Health Organization have always remained open and unimpeded.
Over the past year alone, the central government approved applications from 18 medical and health experts from China’s Taiwan region to participate in WHO technical activities, covering areas such as immunization strategies, vaccine development, mental health, and digital health. Under the framework of the International Health Regulations, China’s Taiwan region is able to promptly access and report health emergency information to the WHO.
The two sides across the Taiwan Strait also maintain smooth information-sharing mechanisms on infectious disease outbreaks and have continued exchanges and cooperation in the field of medical and health care. These facts fully demonstrate that the so-called “gap in the international pandemic prevention system” is nothing more than a fabricated narrative.
In recent years, a tiny minority of countries have repeatedly attempted to distort United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758 and the fundamental fact that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China’s territory. This not only challenges China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, but also undermines the post-World War II international order and the authority of the United Nations. The international community clearly recognizes this. During this year’s World Health Assembly, the overwhelming majority of countries explicitly reaffirmed their commitment to the one-China principle, supported United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758, opposed the participation of Taiwan region in the World Health Assembly, and expressed support for China’s position through measures such as sending letters to the Director-General of the World Health Organization. This once again demonstrates that upholding the one-China principle represents international justice, the will of the people, and the prevailing trend of the times.
As the global landscape becomes increasingly complex and unstable, it is all the more important for all countries to jointly uphold the international system with the United Nations at its core and the international order based on international law, rather than create ambiguity and confrontation on issues concerning the core interests of other countries.
The Taiwan question is entirely China’s internal affair and brooks no foreign interference. No matter what the DPP authorities say or do, they cannot change the fact that both sides of the Taiwan Strait belong to one and the same China and that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China’s territory. Nor can they alter the historical trend toward China’s ultimate and inevitable reunification. Upholding the one-China principle, safeguarding the authority of the United Nations, and maintaining the post-World War II international order serve the common interests of the international community and are also conducive to peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.
