The government will negotiate with the WHO if the nation is belittled during the WHO’s International Health Regulations (IHR) integration process, Mainland Affairs Council Vice Chairman Liu Te-shun (劉德勳) told reporters yesterday.
Responding to media reports that China is planning to belittle the nation’s sovereignty while Taiwan is being integrated into the IHR, Liu said the government was paying close attention to the integration process and would immediately seek negotiations with the WHO if this occurs.
The WHO notified Taiwan last month that it had been brought under the umbrella of the IHR, a legal framework under the WHO for global infectious disease control, Liu said, adding that the nation is establishing contacts and interaction with the WHO now that it is part of the global epidemic disease control and healthcare network.
“The procedures in the integration process have nothing to do with China,” Liu said, adding that the nation’s participation in the IHR mechanism is conducted through the WHO and does not need Beijing’s approval.
Things are going smoothly at the moment, Liu said, adding that the government would protect the nation’s sovereignty and interests at all costs during the integration process.
Liu said that the IHR is only one of the many mechanisms under the WHO and urged China not to obstruct the nation’s participation in the World Health Assembly (WHA) — the executive arm of the WHO — as an observer.
“The government will continue to fight for Taiwan’s right to participate in the WHA and all of the WHO’s mechanisms and activities,” Liu said at the press conference.
He said that it was vital that Taiwan be allowed to protect the health and rights of its citizens.
Because of China’s opposition, the nation had previously been excluded from the IHR, even though a “universal application” phrase was introduced in the regulations in 2005 with the firm support of the US and Taiwan’s diplomatic allies, and after encouragement from the EU and Japan.
READY: The CGA said it closely monitored China’s maritime exercise, deployed vessels to shadow the Chinese ships one-on-one and set up emergency response centers Chinese navy and coast guard ships have returned to China, signaling the end of a massive maritime exercise, authorities said yesterday. The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) released images it said showed Chinese vessels sailing north in rough seas past Taiwan on Thursday, on their way to China. “All the Chinese coast guard went back to China yesterday, so although they have not officially made any announcement, we consider it over,” CGA Deputy Director-General Hsieh Ching-chin (謝慶欽) said. Beijing has not confirmed the drills and the Chinese Ministry of National Defense did not say whether the maneuvers had taken place when asked at a
People can take the Taipei MRT free of charge if they access it at Nanjing Sanmin Station or Taipei Arena Station on the Green Line between 12am and 6am on Jan. 1, the Taipei Department of Transportation said on Friday, outlining its plans to ease crowding during New Year’s events in the capital. More than 200,000 people are expected to attend New Year’s Eve events in Taipei, with singer A-mei (張惠妹) performing at the Taipei Dome and the city government’s New Year’s Eve party at Taipei City Hall Plaza, the department said. As people have tended to use the MRT’s Blue or
PUBLIC TRANSPORT: As some roads would be fully or partially closed, people are advised to take the MRT, with services expanded to accommodate more riders This year’s Taipei Marathon, which has obtained its first gold label certification from World Athletics, is to be held from 5am to 1pm tomorrow and would have 28,000 participants. The race is to start from the Taipei City Plaza and would go through major roads throughout the city, with traffic control implemented from 6am to 2pm, officials said. The Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system and New Taipei City MRT Circle line would start operating at 5am on the day of the race, they said. The race would cover Renai Road, Xinyi Road, Hangzhou S Road, Aiguo east and west roads,
Upon its completion next year, the new Tamkang Bridge (淡江大橋) in New Taipei City is to be an important landmark in Taiwan, alongside Taipei 101, Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shi-kai (陳世凱) said today. The bridge is scheduled to be completed in December next year and open to the public in the first half of 2026, connecting New Taipei City’s Tamsui (淡水) and Bali (八里) districts. It is an asymmetric single-tower suspension bridge, nearly 70 stories tall, designed by world-famous architect Zaha Hadid. The bridge aims to alleviate traffic in Tamsui and on the Guandu Bridge (關渡大橋), in addition to increasing the
RSS