II 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2716 

To direct the Secretary of State to develop a strategy to regain observer 

status for Taiwan in the World Health Organization, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 19, 2018 

Mr. INHOFE (for himself, Mr. CORNYN, Mr. RUBIO, and Mr. MENENDEZ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

A BILL 

To direct the Secretary of State to develop a strategy to 

regain observer status for Taiwan in the World Health 

Organization, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. PARTICIPATION OF TAIWAN IN THE WORLD 

4 HEALTH ORGANIZATION. 

5 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find6 ings: 

7 (1) The World Health Organization (WHO) is 

8 a specialized agency of the United Nations, charged 

9 with coordinating health efforts within the United 


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1 Nations system. The World Health Assembly 

2 (WHA) is the decisionmaking body of the WHO, 

3 which convenes annually in May to set the policies 

4 and priorities of the organization. Statehood is not 

5 a requirement for attendance at the WHA, and nu6 merous observers, including non-members and non7 governmental organizations, attended the most re8 cent WHA in May 2017. 

9 (2) Taiwan began seeking to participate in the 

10 WHO as an observer in 1997. In 2009, with strong 

11 support from successive United States administra12 tions, Congress, and like-minded WHO Member 

13 States, and during a period of improved cross-Strait 

14 relations, Taiwan received an invitation to attend 

15 the WHA as an observer under the name ‘‘Chinese 

16 Taipei’’. Taiwan received the same invitation each 

17 year until 2016, when following the election of Presi18 dent Tsai-Ing Wen of the Democratic Progressive 

19 Party, Taiwan’s engagement in the international 

20 community began facing increased resistance from 

21 the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Taiwan’s in22 vitation to the 2016 WHA was received late and in23 cluded new language conditioning Taiwan’s partici24 pation on the PRC’s ‘‘one China principle’’. In 2017, 

25 Taiwan did not receive an invitation to the WHA. 


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1 (3) Taiwan remains a model contributor to 

2 world health, having provided financial and technical 

3 assistance to respond to numerous global health 

4 challenges. Taiwan has invested over $6,000,000,000 

5 in international medical and humanitarian aid ef6 forts impacting over 80 countries since 1996. In 

7 2014, Taiwan responded to the Ebola crisis by do8 nating $1,000,000 and providing 100,000 sets of 

9 personal protective equipment. Through the Global 

10 Cooperation and Training Framework, the United 

11 States and Taiwan have jointly conducted training 

12 programs for experts to combat MERS, Dengue 

13 Fever, and Zika. These diseases know no borders, 

14 and Taiwan’s needless exclusion from global health 

15 cooperation increases the dangers presented by glob16 al pandemics. 

17 (4) Taiwan’s international engagement has 

18 faced increased resistance from the PRC. Taiwan 

19 was not invited to the 2016 Assembly of the Inter20 national Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), despite 

21 participating as a guest at the organization’s prior 

22 summit in 2013. Taiwan’s request to participate in 

23 the 2016 General Assembly of the International 

24 Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) was also 

25 rejected. In May 2017, PRC delegates disrupted a 


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1 meeting of the Kimberley Process on conflict dia2 monds held in Perth, Australia, until delegates from 

3 Taiwan were asked to leave. In June 2017, the Re4 public of Panama granted diplomatic recognition to 

5 the PRC, terminating a longstanding diplomatic re6 lationship with Taiwan. 

7 (5) Congress has established a policy of support 

8 for Taiwan’s participation in international bodies 

9 that address shared transnational challenges, par10 ticularly in the WHO. Congress passed H.R. 1794 

11 in the 106th Congress, H.R. 428 in the 107th Con12 gress, and S. 2092 in the 108th Congress to direct 

13 the Secretary of State to establish a strategy for, 

14 and to report annually to Congress on, efforts to ob15 tain observer status for Taiwan at the WHA. Con16 gress also passed H.R. 1151 in the 113th Congress, 

17 directing the Secretary to report on a strategy to 

18 gain observer status for Taiwan at the ICAO Assem19 bly, and H.R. 1853 in the 114th Congress, directing 

20 the Secretary to report on a strategy to gain ob21 server status for Taiwan at the INTERPOL Assem22 bly. However, in 2016 Taiwan did not receive invita23 tions to attend any of these events as an observer. 


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1 (b) AUGMENTATION OF REPORT CONCERNING THE

2 PARTICIPATION OF TAIWAN IN THE WORLD HEALTH OR3 GANIZATION.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (c) of section 1 

5 of the Act entitled, ‘‘An Act to address the partici6 pation of Taiwan in the World Health Organization’’ 

7 (Public Law 108–235; 118 Stat. 656) is amended by 

8 adding at the end the following new paragraph: 

9 ‘‘(3) An account of the changes and improve10 ments the Secretary of State has made to the 

11 United States plan to endorse and obtain observer 

12 status for Taiwan at the World Health Assembly, 

13 following any annual meetings of the World Health 

14 Assembly at which Taiwan did not obtain observer 

15 status.’’. 

16 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made 

17 by paragraph (1) shall take effect and apply begin18 ning with the first report required under subsection 

19 (c) of section 1 of Public Law 108–235 that is sub20 mitted after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

Æ 


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