China Objects to US Proposal Supporting Taiwan's Participation in WHO Conference

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Friday, May 16, 2003

China Objects to US Proposal Supporting Taiwan's Participation in WHO Conference

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China strongly objected the US Congress' approved proposal supporting Taiwan's participation in the World Health Organization (WHO) conference as an observer, said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue here Thursday.

In response to a question concerning the latest approval of theproposal, Zhang said that in spite of China's objection, the US Congress persisted in passing the proposal. China expressed strongdissatisfaction and firm objection as well as proposed solemn representations to US side, she added.

Zhang said Taiwan is a part of China, and according to the relevant resolutions of the United Nations and the regulations of the WHO, Taiwan is unqualified to join the WHO as a member or as aquasi-member. Neither is Taiwan eligible to participate in the WHOconference as an observer.

The central government of China is concerned about the health of Taiwan compatriots and actively promoted the exchanges and cooperation in the health arena across the Straits, she said.

Since the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS),said the spokeswoman, the central government of China has been sharing related information and experience with Taiwan and supported the inspection of WHO experts in Taiwan. Taiwan's channel of obtaining health information is unblocked.

Zhang said it is clear the Taiwan authority wishes to make a political issue in the name of SARS, in order to create "two Chinas" or "one China, one Taiwan" in the international community.Since 1997, such an attempt by the Taiwan authority was refused for six consecutive years.

This time, she stressed, it is doomed to failure again.

Zhang said China urged the US government to see clearly the political maneuvers by the Taiwan authority, to abide by the one-China policy and the three Sino-US joint communiques and to object definitively to the above proposal by not supporting Taiwan's participation in the WHO, in order to avoid obstacles to the development of Sino-US relations.

Taiwan cannot join any international organization

There is no excuse for Taiwan to join any international organization, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue said Thursday at a regular press conference.

It is self-evident that Taiwan, as a province of China, is ineligible to participate in the World Health Organization (WHO), an organization open only to sovereign states, nor is it eligible to attend the World Health Assembly as an observer, Zhang said, noting that China resolutely opposes any form of Taiwanese participation in the international organization.

Cooperation and communication across the Taiwan Straits have been smooth since the outbreak of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in Taiwan, and the Chinese central government attaches great importance to and is concerned about the health andsafety of Taiwanese compatriots, Zhang said.

Some health organizations from the mainland and Taiwan Province held a joint seminar on SARS in late April. The two sides also discussed the SARS epidemic via tele-conference on May 9. In addition, experts from Taiwan have inspected Guangdong and Beijing to learn about the situation on the mainland.

The mainland and Taiwan enjoy sound and smooth cooperation in fighting SARS, she said.

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