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US bill to help Taiwan join WHO opposed China is strongly opposed to a US bill that would support Taiwan's efforts to join the World Health Organization (WHO). "The US side has ignored China's stance and signed the wrong bill. We are strongly against that," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue said during a regular news briefing Tuesday. US President George W. Bush signed the bill into law on Monday. Zhang said Taiwan, as part of China, is not eligible to join the WHO or participate in the activities of the WHO as an observer according to related resolutions of the United Nations General Assembly and WHO regulations. The 57th World Health Assembly (WHA), held last month, adopted a proposal of the General Committee with an overwhelming majority to refuse the proposal of "inviting Taiwan to participate in the WHA as an observer". "This has reflected the widely accepted consensus and cut-and-dried attitude of the international community on this issue," Zhang said. She said the central government has always cared for the well-being and health of Taiwan compatriots, and has actively promoted technical co-operation between Taiwan and the WHO. The Chinese delegation suggested four concrete measures to further expand such co-operation, showing its sincerity and constructive attitude, Zhang said. "The channels for Taiwan to acquire health information have been smooth," Zhang said. "The real intention of Taiwan's attempt to join the WHO is to create `two Chinas' or 'one China, one Taiwan' on the international arena. The conspiracy is doomed to fail." The spokeswoman urged the US Government to follow international public opinion, realize Taiwan's political intentions, abide by the three Sino-US joint communiques and its repeatedly reiterated one-China policy and stop all action that support Taiwan's attempt to join the WHO. "Otherwise it will damage the development of China-US relations," she said. In a presidential statement issued on the same day, Bush asked the Executive to "construe the Act to be consistent with the one-China policy of the United States, which remains unchanged, and determine the measures best suited to advance the overall goal of Taiwan participation in the World Health Organization." # |
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