Following the United States’ call for the democratic island to have greater role in the world body, China has maintained that Taiwan has no right to join the UN.
In a statement released on the 50th anniversary of the UN General Assembly’s decision to seat Beijing and expel Taipei, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken expressed concern that Taiwan had become further marginalized on the international scene.
Taiwan has been excluded from meetings of the International Civil Aviation Organization and the World Health Organization, according to Blinken.
“As the international community faces an unprecedented number of complex and global issues, it is critical for all stakeholders to help address these problems. This includes the 24 million people who live in Taiwan,” Blinken said.
“Taiwan’s meaningful participation in the UN system is not a political issue, but a pragmatic one,” he said.
“That is why we encourage all UN member states to join us in supporting Taiwan’s robust, meaningful participation throughout the UN system and in the international community.”
“Taiwan has become a democratic success story,” Blinken said. “We are among the many UN member states who view Taiwan as a valued partner and trusted friend.”
Taiwan has been excluded from meetings of the International Civil Aviation Organization and the World Health Organization, according to Blinken.
Taiwan was praised for its “world-class" reaction to Covid-19, which mostly spared the island following early intervention, and tens of millions of travelers pass through Taiwanese airports each year, he said.
Taiwan, where nationalist forces fled after losing a civil war to communists in 1949, is regarded by China as a province awaiting reunification, by force if necessary.
China reacted to Blinken’s statement by reiterating its position that Taiwan’s government has no place in international diplomacy.
“Taiwan has no right to join the United Nations,” Ma Xiaoguang, spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office in Beijing, told reporters.
“The United Nations is an international governmental organisation composed of sovereign states… Taiwan is a part of China.”
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