The US House of Representatives on Thursday passed legislation giving the US Senate the power to approve WHO agreements, which also included an amendment supporting Taiwan’s full participation at the WHO.
The No WHO Pandemic Preparedness Treaty Without Senate Approval Act, which ensures that any pandemic-related convention of the WHO that attempts to bind the US must be ratified by the US Senate as a treaty, cleared the legislative floor by a bipartisan vote of 219-199.
The act was introduced by Republican US Representative Tom Tiffany to limit the WHO’s influence after the body received strong criticism for its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and close ties to the Chinese Communist Party.
Photo: EPA-EFE
Also included in the bill is an amendment proposed by Republican US Representative Andy Ogles that offers a statement of US policy in support of “Taiwan’s full participation at the WHO.”
Ogle’s amendment passed with a unanimous vote of 403-0, with 34 abstentions.
“For far too long, we [the US] have allowed communist China to dictate the course of US foreign policy, as well as the agenda and membership of every major international organization, including the United Nations,” Ogles said.
“Decades upon decades of giving in to China has left Taiwan with fewer and fewer allies. In the late 1990s, over 30 countries recognized Taiwan. Now the number is down to 12,” he added.
Citing China’s continuing pressure campaign against Taiwan, the lawmaker said no one listened when the latter tried to “warn the WHO of possible human-to-human transmission of the coronavirus on Dec. 31, 2019,” adding that the world health body subsequently released a statement saying that there was no clear evidence of such a thing.
Due to this, the US lost weeks of preparation against the “ravaging effects of the COVID-19 pandemic,” all because “communist China told the world that under no circumstance could Taiwan be given a seat at the table” at the WHO, Ogles said.
His amendment in support of Taiwan was also echoed by Democratic House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee ranking member Gregory Meeks, who described Taiwan as a US ally, “a democracy and a critical part of the international community.”
However, Meeks was more reserved about Taiwan’s full participation at the WHO.
“I agree with Mr Ogle’s amendment, but I do think, however, that we should be precise and careful in how we talk about important policy matters,” he said.
“Taiwan should be contributing its expertise and participating as an observer in the World Health Assembly,” as in line with the US’ “one China” policy, he added.
The US House this week has passed several pro-Taiwan bills, including the Pacific Partnership Act, which aims to strengthen cooperation with Taiwan and the Pacific Islands Forum, and the Taiwan Conflict Deterrence Act, which aims to disincentivize Chinese aggression toward Taiwan by cutting Chinese leaders off from the US financial system if Beijing acts against Taiwan.
The Ministry of the Interior (MOI) is to tighten rules for candidates running for public office, requiring them to declare that they do not hold a Chinese household registration or passport, and that they possess no other foreign citizenship. The requirement was set out in a draft amendment to the Enforcement Rules of the Public Officials Election and Recall Act (公職人員選舉罷免法 ) released by the ministry on Thursday. Under the proposal, candidates would need to make the declaration when submitting their registration forms, which would be published in the official election bulletin. The move follows the removal of several elected officials who were
FOUR DESIGNATED AREAS: Notices were issued for live-fire exercises in waters south and northwest of Penghu, northeast of Keelung and west of Kaohsiung, they said The military is planning three major annual exercises across the army, navy and air force this month, with the navy’s “Hai Chiang” (海強, “Sea Strong”) drills running from today through Friday, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday. The Hai Chiang exercise, which is to take place in waters surrounding Taiwan, would feature P-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft and S-70C anti-submarine helicopters, the ministry said, adding that the drills aim to bolster the nation’s offshore defensive capabilities. China has intensified military and psychological pressure against Taiwan, repeatedly sending warplanes and vessels into areas near the nation’s air defense identification zone and across
FORCED LABOR: A US court listed three Taiwanese and nine firms based in Taiwan in its indictment, with eight of the companies registered at the same address Nine companies registered in Taiwan, as well as three Taiwanese, on Tuesday were named by the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) as Specially Designated Nationals (SDNs) as a result of a US federal court indictment. The indictment unsealed at the federal court in Brooklyn, New York, said that Chen Zhi (陳志), a dual Cambodian-British national, is being indicted for fraud conspiracy, money laundering and overseeing Prince Holding Group’s forced-labor scam camps in Cambodia. At its peak, the company allegedly made US$30 million per day, court documents showed. The US government has seized Chen’s noncustodial wallet, which contains
SENATE RECOMMENDATION: The National Defense Authorization Act encourages the US secretary of defense to invite Taiwan’s navy to participate in the exercises in Hawaii The US Senate on Thursday last week passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2026, which strongly encourages the US secretary of defense to invite Taiwan’s naval forces to participate in the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise, as well as allocating military aid of US$1 billion for Taiwan. The bill, which authorizes appropriations for the military activities of the US Department of Defense, military construction and other purposes, passed with 77 votes in support and 20 against. While the NDAA authorizes about US$925 billion of defense spending, the Central News Agency yesterday reported that an aide of US
RSS