Taiwan's UN Bid FailsThe United Nations General Committee decided Thursday night not to table the issue of "Taiwan's participation in the United Nations" for the 55th session of the General Assembly.The decision was a new heavy blow to the island's attempts for "international space" expansion. This is the eighth consecutive year that the General Committee has turned down requests from a group of small countries, most of them in Africa and Latin America, for UN consideration of the issue. Taiwan's new leadership, formed in March, disregards past defeats and still wishes to regain access into the UN. The General Committee made the decision after an hour-long evening debate, almost four weeks after Senegal and 13 other countries sent, on Taiwan's behalf, a letter to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, demanding the inclusion of the issue in the new General Assembly session's agenda. China immediately voiced its strong opposition to the inclusion. Permanent Representative of China to the UN, Wang Yingfan, also sent a letter to the UN chief, asking the international community to continue to uphold justice and reaffirm the one China policy. Wang also spoke against Taiwan's attempt at the General Committee meeting Thursday night. |
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