Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Thank you for your question. Canada is grateful for the assistance Taiwan provided, as you properly pointed out, and grateful for the collaborative and good relationship Canada has with Taiwan.

The question you raised is an important one. The government continues to value its relationship with Taiwan and works in all ways in which to provide both the benefits of Taiwan’s participation and the benefit to Taiwan of its participation in international fora.

Senator Housakos: Senator Gold, with all due respect, we have heard our government constantly say that we are all in this crisis together. The truth of the matter is Taiwan has walked the talk. They have stepped up and helped the international community with PPE and other health care support.

At the end of the day, I think we have an obligation to work closely with countries that are such a model and are aligned with us when it comes to the defence of human rights and the defence of the rule of law and all the rest of it. We should not be listening to regimes that don’t align with us on human rights and our belief in democracy and all the rest of it.

If we are genuine about aligning ourselves with strong allies who serve as models, why is the government not taking a strong stance and insisting Taiwan be included in the World Health Assembly which is going to be taking place in three weeks?