Leaders from diplomatic allies Paraguay and the Marshall Islands on Tuesday spoke in support of Taiwan’s inclusion in the UN at the General Debate of the world body’s General Assembly in New York City, arguing that Taiwanese deserve equal treatment.
The presidents of the two nation delivered speeches on the first day of the assembly, which opened on Tuesday and continues through Monday next week.
Paraguayan President Mario Abdo Benitez and Marshallese President Hilda Heine spoke up for Taiwan’s bid to be included in the UN.
“My country supports Taiwan’s legitimate request to be included in the UN system and believes that this country can contribute a great deal to its work,” Abdo Benitez said in his remarks.
Abdo Benitez, who was inaugurated last month, said that Taiwan’s inclusion in the UN should be granted based on the UN’s principle of universality.
Heine made a similar appeal in her address, saying that her nation supports recognition of Taiwan’s meaningful participation within the UN system, including programs and agencies such as the WHO, the International Civil Aviation Organization and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.
“The people of Taiwan deserve equal treatment and the UN should resolve the serious issue of Taiwan’s 23 million people being excluded from the UN system — an issue we believe is not addressed in UN General Assembly Resolution 2758,” Heine said.
Adopted in 1971, UN Resolution 2758 recognized the People’s Republic of China as the only lawful representative of China to the UN and expelled “the representatives of Chiang Kai-shek [蔣介石] from the place which they unlawfully occupied at the United Nations and in all the organizations related to it.”
Advocates for Taiwan’s UN membership bid say that the resolution only addresses the representation of “China” at the UN, not Taiwan.
Heine said Taiwan has been implementing the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, and has released a national review of its own initiative.
“[Taiwan] has the capacity to contribute to a wide range of UN programs relevant to global progress. Diseases like tuberculosis know no boundaries and Taiwan has brought its policy framework in line with global efforts,” she said.
Taiwan has served as a partner to the Marshall Islands in addressing non-communicable diseases, Heine said, adding that blocking Taiwan’s participation “does not benefit global human welfare.”
Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Andrew Lee (李憲章) thanked the two allies for speaking up for Taiwan’s 23 million people at the assembly.
SILENCING CRITICS: In addition to blocking Taiwan, China aimed to prevent rights activists from speaking out against authoritarian states, a Cabinet department said The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday condemned transnational repression by Beijing after RightsCon, a major digital human rights conference scheduled to be held in Zambia this week, was abruptly canceled due to Chinese pressure over Taiwanese participation. This year’s RightsCon, the world’s largest conference discussing issues “at the intersection of human rights and technology,” was scheduled to take place from tomorrow to Friday in Lusaka, and expected to draw 2,600 in-person attendees from 150 countries, along with 1,100 online participants. However, organizers were forced to cancel the event due to behind-the-scenes pressure from China, the ministry said, expressing its “strongest condemnation”
Taiwan’s economy grew far faster than expected in the first quarter, as booming demand for artificial intelligence (AI) applications drove a surge in exports, spilling over into investment and consumption, the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) said yesterday. GDP growth was 13.69 percent year-on-year during the January-to-March period, beating the DGBAS’ February forecast by 2.23 percentage points and marking the most robust growth in nearly four decades, DGBAS senior official Chiang Hsin-yi (江心怡) told a news conference in Taipei. The result was powered by exports, which remain the backbone of Taiwan’s economy, Chiang said. Outbound shipments jumped 51.12 percent year-on-year to
DELAYED BUT DETERMINED: The president’s visit highlights Taiwan’s right to international engagement amid regional pressure from China President Willaim Lai (賴清德) yesterday arrived in Eswatini, more than a week after his planned visit to Taiwan’s sole African ally was suspended because of revoked overflight permits. “The visit, originally scheduled for April 22, was postponed due to unforeseen external factors,” Lai wrote on social media. “After several days of careful arrangements by our diplomatic and national security teams, we successfully arrived today.” Lai said he looked forward to further deepening Taiwan-Eswatini relations through closer cooperation in the economy, agriculture, culture and education, as well as advancing the nation’s international partnerships. The president was initially scheduled to arrive in time to celebrate
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp (IRGC) yesterday said the US faced a choice between an “impossible” military operation or a “bad deal” with Tehran, after US President Donald Trump disparaged Iran’s latest peace proposal. Negotiations between the two countries have been deadlocked since a ceasefire came into effect on April 8, with only one round of direct peace talks held so far. Iran’s Tasnim and Fars news agencies reported that Tehran had submitted a 14-point proposal to mediator Pakistan, but Trump was quick to cast doubt on it. “I will soon be reviewing the plan that Iran has just sent to us, but
RSS