Minister of Foreign Affairs Mark Chen (
Chen said that the foreign aid was clearly earmarked for specific uses and that he had not even heard of the Friendship Company, an organization believed to have made "donations" on the government's behalf, which is at the center of the controversy in Cosa Rica.
PHOTO: WANG YIH-SUNG, TAIPEI TIMES
Chen made the remarks in response to inquiries from the media regarding the ministry's stance on former Costa Rican president Miguel Angel Rodriguez' having returned home on Friday to face corruption allegations, after just two weeks as head of the Organization of American States (OAS).
Reports have implicated the ministry's foreign aid programs in the scandal.
"I don't think these allegations are true. Every country has its own loves and hates in politics. We can't interfere with [Costa Rica's] internal politics. However, from the ministry's point of view, we hope that the aid we give will reach [those who need it.] This is our primary goal," Chen said yesterday, while attending a seminar on global trends in international development.
Chen denied the validity of the allegations, saying that all foreign aid is allocated with funds earmarked with specific goals in mind.
"In cooperating with our diplomatic allies, there is a set plan. For example, we plan to build a bridge or a hospital. These you can see," Chen said, pointing to the aid that Taiwan had recently given to Grenada to boost that nation's hurricane reconstruction.
"Foreign aid is given in accordance with set procedures. We sign an agreement with the local government, but what happens for sure, we do not know. For us, none of [the allegations] could have happened ... when something like this comes up, we are completely in the dark because we don't engage in this type of conduct," Chen said.
He said that the ministry's embassies in relevant nations would be "working to understand the situation" in more detail.
He was unaware of the reported irregularities involving foreign aid funds, saying that he had never heard of the Friendship Company when pressed by reporters.
"I've never heard of it, never even heard of it," he said.
Rodriguez is accused of improperly taking US$200,000 in 2001 from the foreign ministry, and another US$200,000 in 2002 from the Republic of China Embassy in San Jose, while he served as president, according to Costa Rica's Channel 7 news and La Nacion newspaper.
The reports also detail payments of up to US$1 million to the Panama-based firm Denisse from the Friendship Company in 1999.
"This is their domestic affair and it is not appropriate for me to make comments, especially since they are our diplomatic allies ... I trust that their judicial process will make a decision on the matter," Chen said.
Upon arrival in Costa Rica on Friday, Rodriguez was detained by officials who want to question him about the allegations that he accepted kickbacks from Taiwan and other sources.
"I am calm, I am not afraid. I have a lot of faith in God," Rodriguez told reporters on the plane. "I have come back to defend myself and prove my innocence."
Rodriguez is also accused of having pocketed US$500,000 in a scandal involving French telecommunications company Alcatel. Rodriguez admits to having taken US$140,000 on loan. No formal charges have been brought against the former president.
RESPONSE: The transit sends a message that China’s alignment with other countries would not deter the West from defending freedom of navigation, an academic said Canadian frigate the Ville de Quebec and Australian guided-missile destroyer the Brisbane transited the Taiwan Strait yesterday morning, the first time the two nations have conducted a joint freedom of navigation operation. The Canadian and Australian militaries did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Ministry of National Defense declined to confirm the passage, saying only that Taiwan’s armed forces had deployed surveillance and reconnaissance assets, along with warships and combat aircraft, to safeguard security across the Strait. The two vessels were observed transiting northward along the eastern side of the Taiwan Strait’s median line, with Japan being their most likely destination,
GLOBAL ISSUE: If China annexes Taiwan, ‘it will not stop its expansion there, as it only becomes stronger and has more force to expand further,’ the president said China’s military and diplomatic expansion is not a sole issue for Taiwan, but one that risks world peace, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, adding that Taiwan would stand with the alliance of democratic countries to preserve peace through deterrence. Lai made the remark in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times). “China is strategically pushing forward to change the international order,” Lai said, adding that China established the Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank, launched the Belt and Road Initiative, and pushed for yuan internationalization, because it wants to replace the democratic rules-based international
ECONOMIC BOOST: Should the more than 23 million people eligible for the NT$10,000 handouts spend them the same way as in 2023, GDP could rise 0.5 percent, an official said Universal cash handouts of NT$10,000 (US$330) are to be disbursed late next month at the earliest — including to permanent residents and foreign residents married to Taiwanese — pending legislative approval, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The Executive Yuan yesterday approved the Special Act for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience in Response to International Circumstances (因應國際情勢強化經濟社會及民生國安韌性特別條例). The NT$550 billion special budget includes NT$236 billion for the cash handouts, plus an additional NT$20 billion set aside as reserve funds, expected to be used to support industries. Handouts might begin one month after the bill is promulgated and would be completed within
The National Development Council (NDC) yesterday unveiled details of new regulations that ease restrictions on foreigners working or living in Taiwan, as part of a bid to attract skilled workers from abroad. The regulations, which could go into effect in the first quarter of next year, stem from amendments to the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及僱用法) passed by lawmakers on Aug. 29. Students categorized as “overseas compatriots” would be allowed to stay and work in Taiwan in the two years after their graduation without obtaining additional permits, doing away with the evaluation process that is currently required,
RSS