Cannot grant Taiwan observer status at Interpol general assembly: Secy Gen Jurgen Stock
Oct 17, 2022
New Delhi [India], October 17 : Interpol head Jurgen Stock on Monday said that the agency cannot grant Taiwan observer status at the Interpol general assembly as the international criminal police organization only recognises the People's Republic of China and not Taiwan as the sole representative of China.
Interpol Secretary General Jurgen Stock during a press conference said, "In 1984 Interpol general assembly recognised the People's Republic of China as a sole representative of China. As such Interpol recognises Taiwan as part of China and as China is a member of Interpol, it can't grant Taiwan observer status at Interpol general assembly."
"Arrangements were put in place after 1984 to enable Interpol national centre bureaus and China-Taiwan police administration to exchange info through Interpol," the Secretary-General added.
He made these remarks at the 90th INTERPOL General Assembly. These statements also come in the backdrop of a strong war of words which has been brewing between China and Taiwan for quite some time now, especially after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to the island nation.
In a recent scathing attack, Chinese leader Xi Jinping while delivering a report to the 20th Communist party National Congress in Beijing, defended the military aggression against Taiwan, saying he "safeguarded" the country's "dignity and core interests" for ensuring security.
Reacting strongly to Xi's rhetoric, the island nation responded by saying that it will never compromise on the values of sovereignty, democracy and freedom. "The national security team is closely monitoring the situation and will continue to pay close attention to subsequent developments," Taiwan presidential office spokesperson Chang Tun-han said.
This is not the only international body which has denied Taiwan observer status. Earlier, Taiwan requested to participate in the World Health Assembly (WHA) as an observer; however, the island nation was excluded from the conference for the sixth straight year in 2022 as the Chinese government has been blocking Taiwan's representation.
The General Assembly is Interpol's supreme governing body, comprising representatives from each of the 195 member countries which meets annually. Each member country may be represented by one or several delegates who are typically ministers, chiefs of police, heads of their Interpol National Central Bureaus and senior ministry officials.
It meets once a year and takes all the major decisions affecting general policy, the resources needed for international cooperation, working methods, finances and programmes of activities. These decisions are in the form of resolutions.
This year, India is hosting the General Assembly's 90th session in New Delhi. The agenda includes presentations, workshops and discussions on various subjects.
INTERPOl has thanked India and the officials from New Delhi for hosting this year's General Assembly and welcoming its delegates from member countries. It recognized India's efforts to put on an event of this scale.
The 90th Annual General Assembly of Interpol is going to be held between October 18-21 at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be inaugurating the Assembly on October 18 while Union Home Minister Amit Shah will be addressing the valedictory function on October 21.
A composite security system has been set up in and around Pragati Maidan and the JLN stadium.
