Barring Taiwan from WHO a ‘serious’ health concern: Canada, U.S., allies say GlobePolitics
Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director general of the WHO, answers questions at the European headquarters of the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland on Feb. 7, 2018.Canada, the United States and six major allies have told the World Health Organization that its ongoing exclusion of Taiwan has created a serious public health concern during the COVID-19 crisis.
While Canada does not recognize Taiwan’s sovereignty, it does maintain trade and cultural relations, and Foreign Affairs Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne has said the island’s presence as a non-state observer at this week’s meetings would help the pandemic fight. The letter calls Taiwan a capable and responsible player in the world’s health community, and says it has scientific and technical expertise “that could help save lives around the world.”The letter says it was “regrettable” that the WHO broke with its guiding principles by excluding Taiwan from the assembly.
Despite co-operation on health and trade since the pandemic’s outbreak, relations between Canada and China have been severely strained since the RCMP arrested Chinese high-tech scion Meng Wanzhou on an American extradition warrant in December 2018. “Had the WHO allowed Taiwan’s health experts to share information and best practices in early January, governments around the world could have had more complete information on which to base their public health policies.”
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