TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A joint statement issued by the G7 foreign ministers after their meeting on Wednesday (May 5) calls for Taiwan's participation in both the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Health Assembly (WHA).
In the first face-to-face G7 conference since 2019, foreign ministers from the member states — the U.K., Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the U.S. — attended a meeting in London on Wednesday. The foreign ministers from Australia, India, South Korea, and South Africa were also present.
In the statement, the G7 foreign ministers stressed the importance of improving global cooperation on important matters by ensuring "inclusive processes" in global organizations. They then declared: "We support Taiwan’s meaningful participation in World Health Organisation forums and the World Health Assembly."
Saying that the worldwide community should be allowed to draw on the experience of all partners, the ministers lauded Taiwan for its "successful contribution to the tackling of the COVID-19 pandemic."
The ministers also expressed their concern about the situations in the East and South China Seas and emphasized the "importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait." They called for a peaceful resolution to cross-strait issues and reiterated opposition to "unilateral actions that could escalate tensions and undermine regional stability."
In response, Taiwanese representative to the U.S. Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) on Thursday morning (May 6) posted a tweet expressing Taiwan's gratitude for the foreign ministers' support for the country's "meaningful participation" in the WHO. She also thanked them for their recognition of the country's "ability to contribute to the global fight against COVID-19."
Grateful that G7 FMs support Taiwan’s meaningful participation in the WHO and recognizes Taiwan’s ability to contribute to the global fight against COVID-19. This means a lot, thanks to all who helped! #TaiwanCanHelp. https://t.co/E3zlObsnxA
— Bi-khim Hsiao 蕭美琴 (@bikhim) May 5, 2021