Taiwan is doing all it can to secure attendance at this year’s annual meeting of the World Health Assembly in Geneva. That’s the word from the Foreign Ministry’s Department of International Organizations on Friday.
Taiwan lost its observer status at the WHA when the current government came to power in 2016, after China objected to the country’s attendance. Since then, a number of Taiwanese allies have expressed their support for Taiwan’s renewed participation in the organization. Those calls have intensified since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, during which Taiwan has received international praise for its effective response to the contagion.
Foreign Ministry official Sharon Wu says that the success of the “Taiwan model” has demonstrated the “urgency and necessity” of Taiwan’s participation in the World Health Organization. She says Taiwan will continue to seek the support of like-minded countries and work to uphold a rules-based international system.
Taiwan recently received a show of support in the US Congress, in the form of two bills seeking Taiwan’s participation in the World Health Organization. Representatives Brad Sherman and Young Kim’s bill has proceeded to discussion by the Committee on Foreign Affairs.