Statement by H.E. Ambassador CHEN Xu at the Plenary of the 74th World Health Assembly
2021-05-24 21:01
 

Ms. President, Mr. Director-General, Delegates,

 

The General Committee of the 74th World Health Assembly(WHA74) made a recommendation not to include the Taiwan-related proposal in the agenda. The Chinese delegation firmly supports this recommendation. I would like to stress the following points:

 

First, Taiwan is an inalienable part of China. the UNGA Resolution 2758 and WHA Resolution 25.1 provided the legal basis for WHO to abide by the one-China principle, and recognized Taiwan as part of China. The Taiwan-related proposal is in violation of the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, runs against the WHO's Constitution and the WHA's Rules of Procedure, and is illegal and invalid.

 

Second, the Taiwan region's participation in the WHA must be handled in accordance with the one-China principle and through cross-strait consultations. The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities in the Taiwan region obstinately adhered to the separatist position of "Taiwan independence" and refused to recognize that both sides of the Taiwan Strait belong to one and the same China. As a result, the political foundation for the Taiwan region to participate in WHA has ceased to exist.

 

Third, it must be pointed out that, the DPP authorities in the Taiwan region, by instigating a small number of countries to put forward this Taiwan-related proposal, attempt to create "two Chinas" or "one China, one Taiwan" within the UN system and the WHO, and advance their political agenda at the WHA to extend its so-called "international space" and to advocate the so-called "independent sovereign status", which is doomed to failure.

 

Fourth, based on the one-China principle, the Central Government of China has made appropriate arrangements for the Taiwan region's participation in global health affairs.  Since the outbreak of the pandemic, the Central Government has sent 260 notifications on COVID-19 to the Taiwan region. Health experts in  the Taiwan region have participated in 16 WHO technical activities.The WHO Secretariat briefed health experts in the Taiwan region several times on information of COVID-19 pandemic. The so-called "international epidemic prevention gap" does not exist, nor do experts of the Taiwan region lack channels and platforms to share response and control practices with others.

 

Ms. President,

 

The WHA has already reached a conclusion on Taiwan-related issue. Certain countries' insistence on submitting a Taiwan-related proposal can only harm the interests of the majority of the WHO member states. As COVID-19 pandemic continues to rage globally, posing daunting challenges to member states, the 74th WHA's primary task is to focus on global anti-pandemic cooperation.We urge relevant countries to stop politicizing health issues and using Taiwan issues to interfere in China's internal affairs, and stop disturbing the proper order of the Assembly.

 

We call on President to make her ruling to endorse the recommendation made by the General Committee not to include the Taiwan-related proposal in the agenda of the Assembly.