Taiwan has announced it will for the first time skip a major World Trade Organization (WTO) ministerial meeting after a dispute with host nation Cameroon over how the island was identified on official documents.
Taiwan skips WTO meeting after Cameroon labels it ‘Province of China’
A giant sign hanging in front of the WTO reading 30 years of the WTO or 30 years of trade for people and planet is photographed next to the entrance of the headquarters.
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The 14th WTO Ministerial Conference, set for March 26‑29 in Yaoundé, was to include representatives from members around the world, but Taiwan’s delegation will not attend.
Taipei’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Tuesday it lodged a “stern protest” after Cameroon issued visa paperwork labeling Taiwan as “Taiwan, Province of China” a designation the democratic island strongly rejects as undermining its status and dignity.
Taiwan has been a member of the WTO since 2002 under the name “Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu (Chinese Taipei),” but Beijing’s insistence on the one‑China principle continues to limit how it is described internationally.
China’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian reiterated that Taiwan is “an inalienable part of China” and said participation in international organisations must follow the one‑China policy. Lin accused Taiwan’s current authorities of political manipulation and urged that their push for formal independence would fail.
The WTO declined to comment on the situation.