Sandwiched between the ongoing rift between the United States and China, Taiwan continues to pay heavily as the World Health Organization — branded as a "puppet of China" by US President Donald Trump not too long ago — is still doing what pleases Beijing the most. The island nation being denied participation in the ongoing 73rd Session of the World Health Assembly, which resumed virtually yesterday, is being seen as another such order dictated by the Xi Jinping regime and dutifully followed by Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the chief of agency responsible for international public health. This in spite of Taiwan being praised the world over for its effective handling of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The World Health Assembly is the decision-making body of the WHO. It is attended by delegations from all WHO Member States (194 across six regions) and focuses on a specific health agenda prepared by the Executive Board. The Health Assembly is held annually in Geneva but this year, due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the session is being held virtually from November 9-14.

With China considering independent country Taiwan as a part of its own, the WHO Director-General has maintained that the decision on any participation from Taiwan has to be made by the member states with the consent of "the relevant government" clearly suggesting that things won't move an inch without Beijing's approval.

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"We express strong regret and dissatisfaction at China's obstruction of Taiwan participating in the WHO and the WHO's continuing to neglect the health and human rights of Taiwan’s 23.5 million people," Taiwan's Foreign Ministry said in a statement after not getting an invite for the meeting.

It isn't for the first time that Taiwan has blasted a WHO move or accused China of creating an "obstruction". In February, as the world began to take the global outbreak of coronavirus seriously, Taiwan had told the WHO categorically that Taiwan is not China.

"Taiwan is not under China's jurisdiction; Taiwan's and China's health are administered by separate and independent health authorities; and Taiwan's and China's flight information regions are administered by separate and independent civil aviation administrations. This is such a simple reality that the WHO should never have missed it," said Taiwan's Foreign Minister Jaushieh Joseph Wu after several countries had banned flights to the island following WHO including Taiwan as part of China in its report.

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Subsequently, Taiwan was also excluded from the annual meeting of the WHO which exhibited China's hold over the organization. This despite many countries in Europe, Latin America and even the United States urging the body to include Taiwan in its meetings.

"During this unprecedented global health emergency, the international community is counting on a WHA that leaves no one behind, including Taiwan and its population of 23 million people. The United States is encouraged by the international community's growing support for Taiwan's meaningful participation in the global health system. Now more than ever, in view of Taiwan’s resounding success in responding to Covid-19, Director-General Tedros must allow Taiwan to share its best practices at the WHA," the US Mission to the United Nations in Geneva said last Friday asking the WHO to reconsider its decision of ignoring Taiwan repeatedly

As many as 644 European parliamentarians have also, in a letter written to Director-General Tedros on November 5, expressed their surprise over the country's exclusion even as the ‘Taiwan model’ in fighting Covid-19 has been widely hailed as an exemplar of how to handle the unprecedented global public health crisis.

"Regrettably, despite considerable calls and support from the international community, Taiwan's participation in the WHO is still met with obstacles. Until now, the WHO Western Pacific Regional Office (WPRO) continues to refuse to contact or interact with Taiwan, thus denying Taiwan access to updated information on disease or border control measures by other countries in the region. What is more, Taiwan has no access to WHO Covid-19 Reference Laboratory Networks either, and more than 70 per cent of its applications to attend the WHO technical meetings have been ignored or declined," the letter mentioned while requesting the WHO to allow Taiwan to take part in the WHA as an observer.

The World Medical Association (WMA) described the WHO's continued refusal to allow Taiwan an observer status as "cynical and counterproductive."

"The Covid-19 pandemic is a proof that cooperation for and with all health care systems in the world is necessary. Therefore, we believe it is both cynical and counterproductive to continue excluding the health representatives from Taiwan from participating in the World Health Assembly and the technical meetings of the WHO. Even more so since Taiwan has so much to offer in expertise and material help," the WMA Chair of Council, Dr. Frank Montgomery wrote in an 'open letter' a few days ago.

The future doesn't look rosy either.

While China has till now refused to acknowledge Joe Biden's victory, Taiwan has already congratulated Biden for winning the US Presidential election and hoped of making the relationship "stronger", thus infuriating the Chinese government further.

"Now it is my turn to extend congratulations to @JoeBiden &amp; @KamalaHarris on being elected President &amp; VP-elect. The values on which we have built our relationship could not be stronger. I look fwd to working together to further our friendship, &amp; contributions to int’l society," wrote Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen while re-tweeting Biden's message to her from earlier this year when she was re-elected.

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