Taiwan Has Gained Ground on the Global Stage Despite WHA Exclusion

After a somewhat fevered buildup, the question of whether Taiwan should be re-admitted as an observer to the World Health Assembly (WHA) has been pushed to later this year when countries, hopefully, reconvene normally.

Taiwan followed the recommendations of “diplomatic allies and like-minded countries” and, in a last minute announcement, postponed its request to be admitted as an observer on May 18. The rationale behind this action was the shortened assembly agenda due to the COVID-19 pandemic. With their actions, the Taiwanese government showed that, for President Tsai Ing-wen蔡英文 and her administration, global health is too important to play politics.

This was without a doubt the best path forward for Taiwan, given that nations around the world are still battling the virus and trying to find a safe way to re-open their economies. Pushing forward with the request might have given the impression that Taiwan was selfish, a country only concerned about its political ventures and not about global health. This would have provided an opportunity for China to seize upon these optics to try to push Taiwan even further from its objective of re-attaining observer status at the assembly, so by stepping back Taiwan may have won much more. It not only proved to the world that the country is laser-focused on the global health situation, but that it also understands that this is not the moment to force countries to spend valuable time on a controversial vote.

It is true that Taiwan desires more international recognition, and that its inclusion in the WHA would be a step in the right direction to achieve this goal. But Taiwan has already brought international attention to its cause, created an image of success, and improved its relations with allies and other countries around the world during the COVID-19 pandemic.

One of those countries could prove especially helpful to Taiwan’s cause: India.

India’s nominee, health minister Harsh Vardhan, was appointed chairperson of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) executive board on May 22, giving the country a more prominent role at the organization. This appointment means the country will also have a say in the shortlisting of the next WHO director-general after the tenure of Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus ends in May 2021.

India’s relationship with China has been a contentious one, due to a long decades conflict triggered by what has been described by the spokesman for the Indian Ministry of Defense as an issue of “boundaries not resolved”, between the two countries that share the world’s longest land borders. These factors could make it less likely for a China-friendly new director to be selected when the next election takes place.

Taiwan has been very supportive of India’s fight against COVID-19, donating a million masks to protect its medical personnel, and given the complicated relationships both countries have with China, India’s ascension within the organization might benefit Taiwan in the future. This idea is further reinforced by many recent editorials in Indian newspapers that show support for the Taiwanese struggle, with some of them even calling for its participation as an observer in the World Health Assembly. The attention the hashtag #TweetforTaiwan received from Indian users suggests that the support for the country may be coming from the general population too.

These developments are worth noting, but are far from being the only accomplishments that Taiwan has managed to achieve during this pandemic.

The country has also garnered massive coverage of its success in getting the virus under control without resorting to draconian measures such as lockdowns. The international attention it has received can in part be attributed to the well-thought-out campaign “Taiwan Can Help,” which both illustrates its success against the virus as well as the struggle to share its knowledge while being locked out of the biggest health organization on the planet.

Taiwan has donated millions of facemasks to countries around the world. (Credit: Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Twitter)

Taiwan has also managed to improve its relationship with countries around the world thanks to the donation of personal protection equipment (PPE), including 17 million masks, which were distributed to many countries around the world, regardless of whether they are Taiwan’s diplomatic allies or not. Countries like the United States, Canada, New Zealand, and Australia have been among the beneficiaries. Taiwan has also donated essential Taiwan-manufactured medical equipment, such as forehead thermometers and thermal imaging cameras to other countries.

On May 15, Taiwan held a virtual conference with 13 like-minded countries, including the United States, Canada, and Japan, to discuss COVID-19 prevention efforts and explain the strategy that has allowed its citizens to maintain a normal life without putting their health in peril.

This improvement in the relationships with other countries around the world will not be easy to erase, regardless of how much the Chinese government dislikes the idea.

Additionally, an increasing number of countries seem willing to defy the Chinese government. One of the first countries to do so was Australia which initially proposed a WHO investigation of the Chinese handling of the coronavirus pandemic, a proposal that was met by threats from Beijing of “economic consequences” if it went ahead. Their intimidation was not successful, given than more than 110 countries threw their support behind a draft resolution to “evaluate” the international health response by China, something that is significant to say the least. An amended proposal was passed on May 19 with no objections.

Australia was not the only country to stand up to China as a result of this crisis, New Zealand was also among the many countries that backed Taiwan’s participation at the WHA, and its government doubled down on its position even after the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) issued threats saying that the statements of support could “damage bilateral ties” between the two countries.

France also stood up to Chinese warnings about a possible sales deal with Taiwan to upgrade its ships’ missile interference system, responding to the CCP complaints by reminding Beijing of the importance of global solidarity during the COVID-19 crisis. “All our attention and efforts should be focused on battling the pandemic,” the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs said in a statement.

Prior to the pandemic, many countries adopted policies of staying silent regarding the China-Taiwan question, so that so many are willing to go against China’s demands and even stand up for Taiwan, is quite an achievement for the country and something that may indicate a long-term improvement for Taiwan’s situation on the global stage.

The way Taiwan has handled this crisis has shown the world that it is a country with a lot to share. The composure demonstrated by dropping its request to be accepted as an observer to the WHA (allowing countries to maximize their health related discussions leaving politics aside), its donations of PPE and other much needed medical equipment, and its willingness to share its expertise have demonstrated that Taiwan acts as a responsible global player.

This demonstrates how much Taiwan deserves a seat at the table when global health discussions are being conducted, and that regardless of how powerful the Chinese government might be or how much money they might have, Taiwan and its people will never abandon their determination to keep fighting to play that role without fear of retaliation.

(Cover photo via Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ROC (Taiwan), Twitter)