Germany opposes politicization of global health issues
Taiwan News
Date: 2019/05/09
By: Matthew Strong, Taiwan News, Staff Writer
A previous World Health Assembly. (By Central News Agency)
TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Following the United States and Japan, Australia and Germany were the latest countries to voice support for Taiwan’s attempts at attending the World Health Assembly (WHA), reports said Thursday (May 9).
The organizer of the May 20-28 event in Geneva, the World Health Organization (WHO), failed for the third year running to invite Taiwan, due to pressure from China. Despite the latest example of Chinese bullying, a government-led delegation will still travel to Switzerland to meet with WHA participants.
Acting separately, Australia and Germany on Thursday said through their representative offices in Taiwan that the country should have the right to attend the global health meet.
“Germany strongly opposes the politicization of global health issues,” the German office said, according to the Central News Agency. A statement described Taiwan as a major airline hub, making it necessary for the country to play an important role in preventing the spread of contagious diseases. [FULL STORY]
