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Palau officials deny any changes in Taipei relations

Both candidates in Palau's upcoming presidential election yesterday pledged continued support for the Pacific island nation's newly established diplomatic relations with Taiwan.

Palau Vice President Tommy Remengesau Jr and Senate Foreign Affairs Committee chairman Peter Sugiyama are the only two contestants to have declared their candidacies so far in Palau's presidential election, which is set for Nov. 7.

"Diplomatic ties with Taiwan should remain the same," said Sugiyama, noting that the Senate has asked the executive branch to present an assessment of its diplomatic relations with Taiwan.

While the lower House of Delegates passed a resolution supporting Palauan President Kuniwo Nakamura's decision to establish formal ties with Taiwan last year, the announcement establishing diplomatic relations on Dec. 29, 1999, actually took members of both houses by surprise.

Sugiyama also said he would like to lead a delegation of congressmen to Taiwan on a fact-finding trip before his own election campaign heats up later this year.

"Whoever is elected in November will have the endorsement of this administration," President Nakamura told reporters during a meeting with visiting Foreign Minister Chen Chien-jen (程建人) yesterday.

"We will have a continuity with policies," said Nakamura.

President Nakamura has announced his retirement this year, after serving two terms in office.

As a former vice president, Nakamura defeated the incumbent president Ngiratkel Etpison in the presidential election of 1992 and was re-elected in 1996 for a second four-year term.

Given the lack of a formal political party system in Palau, Nakamura declined to say which candidate he supports in the November election.

During the formal opening of Taiwan's embassy in Koror on Sunday night, Vice President Remengesau told the Taipei Times that if elected, he would continue unchanged with the recently-forged diplomatic ties with Taiwan.

Palau has been yet another site in the on-going diplomatic tug-of-war between Taiwan and China since gaining independence from the US in 1994.

As early as 1983, Palau and Taiwan had established government-to-government contact, and Palau was reportedly instrumental in allowing Taiwan's participation as a dialogue partner in the Pacific Island Forum -- formerly known as the South Pacific Forum.

Taiwan offered US$231,000 in grant-aid to Palau for hosting the Pacific Island Forum last year.

The KMT's Business Management Committee has also invested around US$10 million in the Palsia Hotel Palau that opened in 1998.

But Taiwan's diplomatic donations have been matched by China, which has given Palau luxury vehicles worth an estimated US$400,000.
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