On May 18th, the General Committee and the Plenary Session of the 79th World Health Assembly (WHA) respectively decided to reject the so-called proposal of “inviting Taiwan to participate in the WHA as an observer” submitted by certain countries. This has been the 10th year in a row that the WHA has rejected the so-called proposal concerning Taiwan.

China firmly opposes politicizing health issues. There is but one China in the world. Taiwan is an inalienable part of China’s territory. The Government of the People’s Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China. When handling issues related to the Taiwan region, the WHO and other international organizations must follow the one-China principle, which is also a fundamental principle as demonstrated by the UNGA Resolution 2758 and WHA Resolution 25.1. China’s Taiwan region, unless given approval by the central government, has no basis, reason or right to participate in the WHA. Due to the DPP authorities’ persistent separatist stance, the political foundation for the Taiwan region to participate in the WHA no longer exists.

The Taiwan region has sufficient and unimpeded channels to participate in the WHO’s communication and cooperation in the technical domain. Under the prerequisite that the one-China principle is upheld, the Chinese central government has made proper arrangement for the Taiwan region’s participation in global health affairs, and the Taiwan region’s medical and health experts can participate in WHO technical meetings. Over the past year alone, the central government has approved the applications of 18 medical and health experts from the Taiwan region to participate in WHO technical activities, covering various topics including immunization strategy, vaccine development, mental health and digital health. Under the framework of the International Health Regulations, the Taiwan region has unimpeded and full-fledged information exchange mechanisms with the WHO and countries in the world, and it can promptly access and report to the WHO concerning information related to health emergencies.

The decision made by the WHA fully shows that commitment to the one-China principle is where global opinion trends and the arc of history bends, and what the greater national interests entail. The international community’s commitment to the one-China principle is not to be challenged or shaken. No matter what the DPP authorities say or do, it does not change the fact that the two sides of the Strait belong to one and the same China and Taiwan is part of China, nor can it stop the trend towards China’s ultimate and inevitable reunification.