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WHA rejects Taiwan-related proposal for ninth consecutive year

Global Times

By Liu Xin Published: May 19, 2025 10:35 PM

The World Health Assembly (WHA), the highest decision-making body of the World Health Organization (WHO), decided on Monday not to include in its agenda a proposal on Taiwan's participation as an observer, according to the Xinhua News Agency. Following the decision, a spokesperson of the Chinese Foreign Ministry released a statement on Monday, saying that this marks the ninth consecutive year that the WHA has rejected such Taiwan-related proposals.

China's position on the Taiwan region's participation in the activities of international organizations, including the WHO, is consistent and clear. That is, it must be handled in line with the one-China principle, which is also a fundamental principle as demonstrated by the UNGA Resolution 2758 and WHA Resolution 25.1. China's Taiwan region, unless given approval by the central government, has no basis, reason or right to participate in the WHA. Due to the DPP authorities' persistent separatist stance, the political foundation for the Taiwan region to participate in the WHA no longer exists, said the spokesperson.

In recent years, the DPP authorities on Taiwan island, together with a small group of countries including the US, have been hyping up the issue of Taiwan's participation in WHA events in an attempt to promote their respective agendas of "Taiwan independence" and to play the "Taiwan card" to contain China — efforts that have ultimately failed, some Chinese analysts said, welcoming the WHA's decision this year to reject Taiwan-related proposals.

The foreign ministry spokesperson said in the statement on Monday that for quite some time, the DPP authorities and certain countries have been blatantly turning back the wheel of history by deliberately distorting and challenging UNGA Resolution 2758 to challenge the one-China principle.

They are essentially trying to challenge not only China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, but also international justice and prevailing consensus as well as the post-war international order. China's decision to not approve the Taiwan region's participation in this year's WHA has wide support and understanding from the international community, said the spokesperson.

Chen Binhua, a spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, said on Monday that the decision of the 78th WHA to reject Taiwan-related proposal once again demonstrates that adhering to the one-China principle is a universal consensus in the international community, reflecting the will of the people, the prevailing trend, and the foundation of justice. The international community's commitment to the one-China principle is an unchallengeable and unshakable fundamental pattern.

Chen also noted the DPP authorities' stubborn adherence to the "Taiwan independence" separatist stance and refusal to recognize the 1992 Consensus, which embodies the one-China principle, has eliminated the political basis for Taiwan's participation in the WHA. The DPP authorities' attempt to push for the so-called "Taiwan-related proposal" violates the international consensus and has unsurprisingly met with another failure.

Taiwan region's WHA participation must fall under the one-China principle. When the Taiwan authorities headed by then regional leader Ma Ying-jeou who acknowledged the 1992 Consensus and the one-China principle, Taiwan region at that time was able to participate in the WHA in the name of "Chinese Taipei" and as an observer with the consent of the central government, said Zheng Jian, a professor at the Taiwan Research Institute of Xiamen University.

Zheng said that the DPP authorities deliberately create a narrative of so-called "suppression" from the mainland for political gain, using anti-mainland sentiment to divert public attention and rally support. The WHO's core mission is to safeguard people's health and well-being — it should not be used as a tool for political manipulation.

Li Zhenguang, deputy director at the Institute of Taiwan Studies at Beijing Union University, said that even if the Taiwan region does not participate in the WHA, its technical communication with the WHO remains open and unhindered. Taiwan island can access global information on epidemic prevention and control in real time and has established channels to report its own epidemic situations to the WHO. These technical exchanges have never been obstructed.

The international community's commitment to the one-China principle will not be shaken. No matter what the DPP authorities and certain countries do, it does not change the fact that Taiwan is part of China. "Taiwan independence" leads nowhere, said the expert.