BEIJING, April 25 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese mainland spokesperson on Wednesday reiterated that Taiwan is allowed to participate in international events, only based on acceptance of the one-China principle.
"Reasonable arrangements" need to be made through cross-Strait negotiations, said Ma Xiaoguang, spokesman with the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, at a press conference, in response to an inquiry regarding the island's desire to attend the annual World Health Assembly (WHA) meeting in May.
From 2009 to 2016, Taiwan attended the assembly in accordance with the "1992 consensus" which embodies the one-China principle, and through cross-Strait negotiations, according to Ma.
"The reason is widely known for Taiwan's absence from the WHA since the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) took office," Ma said.
Ma said that under current arrangements made by the mainland and the World Health Organization (WHO), Taiwan can access information on global health and epidemic prevention, and its experts participate in WHO-related technical meetings and activities.
Taiwan sent about 58 people to attend WHO-related technical meetings from 2013 to 2017, and reported H1N1 flu cases and human infections of H7N9 bird flu to the WHO in the past few years.
