MOFA thanks allies for UN support

• By Lee I-chia / Staff reporter

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) on Friday expressed its gratitude to the nation’s allies, like-minded countries and friends for showing their support for Taiwan to join the UN and refuting China’s distortion of UN Resolution 2758.

The 79th session of the UN General Assembly opened on Sept. 10, and the General Debate, which began on Sep. 24, ended on Monday last week.

The ministry in a statement thanked countries which supported Taiwan’s bid to join the UN.

Photo: Yang Cheng-yu, Taipei Times

Top government officials of Taiwan’s allies Paraguay, the Marshall Islands, Palau, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Eswatini, Tuvalu, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia and Belize have voiced support for Taiwan in the General Debate and Summit of the Future, it said.

Officials from the Marshall Islands, Tuvalu and Saint Lucia said that Resolution 2758 does not preclude Taiwan’s meaningful participation in the UN system, the ministry said.

During their addresses to the General Debate, US President Joe Biden said the US’ was committed to maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, and Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Penny Wong said Australia has consistently pressed China on peace and stability in the Strait.

US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, in a hearing at the US House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs held before the UN General Debate, said that China was using Resolution 2758 as a diplomatic tool to suppress Taiwan, the ministry said.

Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs Caspar Veldkamp also said at the Dutch House of Representatives that Resolution 2758 does not involve Taiwan, it said.

The G7 foreign ministers issued a joint statement reiterating that maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is indispensable to international security and prosperity, the ministry said, adding that they also expressed their support for Taiwan’s meaningful participation in international organizations.

The ministry said President William Lai (賴清德) was also invited for the first time to give a pre-recorded speech at the annual Concordia Summit on the sidelines of the 79th UN General Assembly.

It also expressed gratitude for the Legislative Yuan’s support, including from a cross-party delegation that attended sideline events in New York and effectively communicated Taiwanese public’s strong wish to join the UN system.

Op-eds by Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) and Taiwan’s representative offices, as well as interviews with Taiwanese representatives, informing people about Taiwan’s bid to join the UN have been published in mainstream international media 455 times this year, the ministry said.

Resolution 2758 did not mention Taiwan and has nothing to do with Taiwan, nor can it be used to prevent Taiwan’s meaningful participation in the UN system or other international organizations, the ministry said.

“Taiwan has the determination, willingness and capability to contribute to international society,” it said, adding that continuous exclusion of Taiwan from global multilateral efforts would be a loss for all humankind, and unfavorable for achieving sustainable development goals.

The ministry urged the UN not to succumb to pressure from China, and accept Taiwan’s full participation, to meet its “leave no one behind” core principle for the implementation of the UN sustainable development goals.

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