Lin Chia-lung Appears in Geneva: First Instance of Taiwan’s Foreign Minister Attending the World Health Assembly Venue Periphery

Taiwanese Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung appeared in Geneva on Sunday (May 17), joining Health Minister Shih Chung-liang to attend an international press conference for a WHA (World Health Assembly) proposal and the Taiwan Smart Healthcare and Health Technology Exhibition, as well as a diplomatic reception. This is the first time a Taiwanese Foreign Minister has been present outside the WHA venue.

The 79th World Health Assembly will open on May 18 in Geneva, Switzerland. In a Facebook post introducing his itinerary in Geneva on Monday (the 18th), Lin Chia-lung said that this year, together with Shih Chung-liang, he arrived in Geneva before the WHA conference, joining the Taiwanese medical community, overseas Taiwanese, and partner countries to demonstrate Taiwan’s power to connect with the world.

Lin Chia-lung said that on the evening of the 17th, he and Shih Chung-liang first attended the European Taiwan Medical Association Forum and Annual Meeting, and then hurrired to a dinner with health ministers and permanent representatives from partner countries, where they met, among others, Palau (as Taiwan calls Belau) Vice President and Minister of Health Raynold Oilouch, Eswatini (Taiwan refers to as Swaziland) Minister of Health Mduduzi Matsebula, and others.

He stated that although Taiwan was once again not invited to the WHA this year, it has never been absent at the moments when global public health needed Taiwan. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Health and Welfare collaborated this time, bringing together 30 Taiwanese medical institutions, enterprises, and academia to jointly hold the first Taiwan Smart Healthcare and Health Industry Exhibition in Geneva, sharing Taiwan’s achievements in smart healthcare, AI applications, medical technology, and humanitarian aid with the international community.

Lin Chia-lung pointed out that this is the first time Taiwan has held a smart healthcare exhibition during the WHA, with the theme "WHO Cares? TAIWAN Cares!" Three main exhibition areas were set up, gathering top Taiwanese medical institutions and enterprises, from smart healthcare and innovative care to resilient health, to showcase the strength of Taiwan’s medical teams.

Lin Chia-lung also witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding for collaboration between the Taiwan International Cooperation and Development Fund and the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, to promote a rehabilitation and psychological support program for amputees in Ukraine.

Lin Chia-lung issued a call to the World Health Organization (WHO), stating that global health should not have gaps due to political interference. From the early days of the pandemic, when Taiwan provided warnings to the international community, to our longstanding cooperation with partner countries on medical, public health, and humanitarian issues, “Taiwan has always proven through its actions that we are an indispensable member of the global health system.”

According to a report by China News Service, meanwhile, Chinese mainland’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Office at Geneva and other international organizations in Switzerland, Jia Guide, on Sunday refuted the manipulation of the Taiwan issue at the WHA, noting that the World Health Assembly has rejected proposals involving Taiwan for nine consecutive years, and expressed belief that the international community will again make the right decision at this year’s WHA.

At a media briefing for the Chinese delegation to the WHA on Sunday, Jia Guide said that with the 79th World Health Assembly about to open, the mainland has decided to disapprove of Taiwan’s participation in this year’s meeting, and this has received widespread support from the international community.

He remarked that a very few countries have, for the tenth consecutive year, put forward the proposal to invite Taiwan to attend the WHA as an observer, once again putting on an inglorious farce. The mainland's stance on Taiwan's participation is consistent and clear: it must be handled according to the one-China principle. The proposals involving Taiwan lack legal basis, distort the facts, violate international justice, and are pure political manipulation, which will ultimately only become a laughingstock.