Taiwan blames China for WHO invite snub

TAIPEI // Taiwan said yesterday that it had been excluded from a major World Health Organisation meeting for the first time in eight years and blamed rival China for the snub.

Delegates attending the World Health Assembly in Geneva this month were supposed to receive their invitations by Monday.

Taiwan, which is fighting international marginalisation as Beijing puts pressure on its allies, said it had not received one. “Mainland China pressured the WHO and blocked it from issuing us an invitation,” said the island’s mainland affairs council.

“We express strong dissatisfaction and protest.”

Relations with China have become frosty since Taiwan’s Beijing-sceptic president, Tsai Ingwen, took office a year ago.

China still considers self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory awaiting reunification and is incensed that Ms Tsai will not agree to the concept that there is only “one China”, unlike her Beijing- friendly predecessor, Ma Ying- jeou. Under Mr Ma, Taiwan was granted “observer status” at the World Health Assembly in 2009 – a rare acknowledgement on the global stage. But since Ms Tsai took the helm, Beijing has sought to block the island from international events.

China reiterated yesterday that Taiwan must accept the “one China” principle and said if it did not, it would not be welcomed into global forums.

“We’ve stressed many times that in dealing with Taiwan’s participation in international organisations’ activities, the ‘one China’ principle must be respected,” said Geng Shuang, spokesman for China’s foreign ministry.

Taiwan’s health minister has said he will lead a delegation to Switzerland, despite the lack of an invitation. But Mr Geng said any measures taken by Ms Tsai were “doomed to fail”.