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Official denies EU opposed Taipei's WHO observer bid

The nation's top representative to the EU yesterday denied reports that the EU had spoken out against Taiwan's bid to join the WHO as an observer in Geneva last week.

Reports last week had quoted a member of the Nicaraguan delegation as saying the Spanish delegate, speaking on behalf of the EU, had voiced opposition to the bid in a steering committee meeting to set an agenda for the World Health Assembly (WHA).

David Lee (李大維), representative to the EU and Belgium, told the legislature's Foreign Affairs Committee yesterday that those reports were incorrect.

"Widespread news coverage reported that the EU had spoken against Taiwan's WHO observer bid during the WHA meeting," Lee said. "Such information is incorrect."

Lee made the remarks yesterday in response to questions from PFP Legislator Sun Ta-chien (孫大千).

Taiwan failed in its sixth attempt to become an observer to the WHO last week in Geneva.

Lee said he was taken aback by the news coverage.

"No consensus, no conclusion and thus no position" was established by the EU concerning Taiwan's WHO bid, he said.

"After I saw the report, I got in touch with the chair of the EU's Asian affairs department to verify its accuracy," Lee said. "He reaffirmed to me that EU had not reached a consensus among its 15 members regarding Taiwan's WHO bid."

Lee therefore emphasized that, media reports on the Spanish delegate's remarks were wrong.

Lee offered two theories as to why the media would report that the EU had opposed Taiwan's bid.

He said the report could have come from participants to the WHA's steering meeting -- held behind closed doors -- who were repeating the Spanish delegate's comments to the media.

Or, Chinese delegates could have told reporters that the EU opposed Taiwan's bid, Lee said. "It goes without saying: We can imagine how they would have responded to media questions."
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