Taiwan is going to participate online in a WHO forum about the 2019 novel coronavirus, set to take place on Tuesday and Wednesday. The WHO has invited over 400 experts from around the world to discuss the outbreak, which has already reached more than two dozen countries. The meeting will focus on new drugs and vaccines. The foreign ministry is working to see if experts can attend the meeting in person which would give Taiwan’s experts the opportunity to interact with other health professionals.
Taiwan’s experts are set to participate online under the designation “Taipei”. Taiwan is the only country with confirmed cases of 2019-nCoV that was excluded from previous WHO Emergency Committee discussions in Geneva.
President Tsai Ing-wen said on Monday that Taiwan will continue to work to participate more in WHO meetings. She said, “This online participation is only the first step. We aim to participate in a more substantial way. We will continue to work towards this. Many allies have spoken out on our behalf at this time and we want to express our gratitude.”
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has also warned governors in the United States to resist any pressure from Beijing to suppress Taiwan. President Tsai thanked Pompeo for his support. She said, “[Beijing] continues to suppress Taiwan and block exchanges with Taiwan. These types of pressure will not enable them to achieve their goal. It only serves to create a bad image for China, so I think this is something that China needs to reflect on.”
When asked about Vice President-elect William Lai’s recent trip to the US, Tsai said it was a personal trip not an official one. She said, though, that she was glad to see overseas support for Taiwan.