The annual meeting of the World Health Assembly, the governing body of the World Health Organization, is currently taking place from May 22nd to May 28th. Taiwan was allowed to participate in the WHO as an observer from 2009 to 2016 under the Ma administration. But after the Tsai administration took power, Taiwan was not allowed to participate, as a result of Chinese pressure. As with past years, Taiwan has sought to call attention to its exclusion from the WHA and WHO, to call for its inclusion as an observer. Nevertheless, efforts to gain admittance to the WHA have been comparatively quiet this year, compared to past years....
There has been a wave of condemnation from western countries after the Solomon Islands signed a security agreement with the Chinese government. In particular, some take the view that the security agreement raises the likelihood of conflict in the Asia Pacific...
An unforeseen consequence of the invasion of Ukraine by Russia may be that it intensifies regional tensions in the Asia Pacific. This occurs due to the fact that hawkish political leaders in the region may use global concern in the wake of the crisis to push for actions that they claim will strengthen military defense...
With the ongoing invasion of Ukraine by Russia, there have been a number of responses in Taiwan. It may not be surprising that in light of the continual military threats directed at Taiwan from China, many in Taiwan see parallels to Ukraine’s plight...
Since a provocative speech by Russian president Vladimir Putin earlier this week, one has seen a number of comparisons between Ukraine and Taiwan circulating in the media. In Putin’s speech, he declared that he did not view Ukraine as qualifying to be a nation-state but as an entity that had been created by the Soviet Union, while also stating that Russia would on the other hand acknowledge separatist-controlled regions in Donetsk and Luhansk. It may not be surprising, then, that there have been comparisons made to Taiwan, or reflection upon how this affects Taiwan...
The tense situation in Ukraine, given the Russian military build-up on Ukraine’s borders, have led to a string of comparisons with Taiwan. Some commentary has drawn parallels between the two contexts...
With the 2022 Beijing Olympics mere months away, it is up in the air as to whether Taiwan will boycott the Olympics in some form. The 2022 Beijing Olympics will take place from February 4th to February 20th next year...
A virtual meeting on Monday between US president Joe Biden and Chinese president Xi Jinping did not lead to any shift in policy on both sides, with both sides instead primarily reiterating their positions...
US president Joe Biden met with Chinese president Xi Jinping today in a virtual meeting. This was one of the most high-profile meetings between the leaders of the world’s two superpowers since Biden took office, with Xi having not left China in around two years. As a result, Xi was not in attendance at the COP26 summit on global carbon emissions, something that was criticized by Biden. The meeting took place on what was Tuesday morning in China and Monday evening in the US...
