Taiwan invited to attend ICAO assembly!

ICAO Council President Roberto Kobeh Gonzalez invited Shen and her delegation to attend the assembly as guests of the president of the council under the name Chinese Taipei, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications announced Sept. 13.

“This is the first time since our country lost its seat in the United Nations 42 years ago that ICAO, as one of the specialised agencies under the U.N. system, has invited us to participate,” Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Vanessa Yea-ping Shih said at a news conference in Taipei.

“Taking part in the assembly will help us get direct information regarding important developments in civil aviation and safety, and allow us to exchange views with civil aviation officials from around the world.

“The potential for future cooperation is unlimited,” she added.

Shen said the invitation shows that there is a common understanding and consensus in the international community on the importance of the Taipei Flight Information Region, and that Taiwan needs to meaningfully participate in the organization’s technical and regional meetings and activities.

The Taipei FIR provides services for more than 1.3 million flights and 40 million passengers annually, making Taiwan a key aviation hub in East Asia. It is linked by air to 117 cities across the globe through 181 passenger routes and 86 freight routes, with 150 scheduled flights to and from Europe, 400 to and from the U.S., 660 to and from Japan, and more than 1,200 across the Taiwan Strait every week.

Taiwan has been pursuing active involvement in U.N. specialised agencies such as ICAO since 2009. The invitation to attend the upcoming assembly is an important step forward in the country’s bid to meaningfully participate in ICAO meetings and activities, and thus better contribute to regional and global aviation safety.