TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Foreign Minister Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) has appealed for the inclusion of Taiwan in the United Nations (UN) system, in an interview with Canadian media on Thursday (Aug. 19)
In the article published by the Toronto Sun, Wu pointed out the COVID-19 pandemic has ravaged the world and led to more than 200 million confirmed cases and 4 million deaths. Currently, the delta variant is creating a new wave of infections.
Despite being hit by a coronavirus surge over the past few months, Taiwan quickly contained the epidemic, Wu said. He added Taiwan is ready to help solve the continuing world crisis by "playing a constructive role in the UN system" and give a helping hand to allies and partners.
However, China, which claims sovereignty over Taiwan, has pressured the UN and its agencies to isolate Taiwan. Its citizens, journalists, and civil society have been rejected and discriminated against by the UN because of nationality, Wu said.
The minister underscored that China wrongly cited the 1971 UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 (XXVI) as the legal basis to exclude Taiwan from the UN system. "The resolution merely addresses the issue of China's representation in the UN; there is no mention of Chinese claim of sovereignty over Taiwan, nor does it authorize the PRC to represent Taiwan in the UN system," Wu said.
For the past 60 years, Taiwan has continued to assist partner countries around the world, Wu said. He added that after the UN adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Taiwan has focused on helping its partners achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), setting a roadmap to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, and collaborating in the fight against and the pandemic and recovery from it.
Wu noted that as the world works together toward recovery, it would be a moral and tangible loss to the world to shut out partners who have the capacity to contribute. "Taiwan is a force for good. Now is the time to bring Taiwan to the table and let Taiwan help," he said.