Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Javier Hou (侯清山) is to lead a diplomatic team to Nicaragua in the near future to consolidate Taiwan's diplomatic ties with the country, another vice minister said yesterday.
Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Yang Tzu-pao (
In a question-and-answer session held yesterday afternoon, several legislators expressed concerns about the possibility of Nicaragua's president-elect Daniel Ortega switching diplomatic ties to China.
The ministry had previously expressed concern that Nicaragua would break off diplomatic relations with Taiwan and set up ties with China if the Sandinistas were elected.
Questions
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Hsiao Bi-khim (
However, the Sandinista government-elect in Nicaragua said on Sunday that it would maintain its diplomatic ties with Taiwan. Vice president-elect Jaime Morales Carazo told Nicaraguan radio station KW Continente that meetings with investors and Taipei's delegates have been held, and he stressed the two countries' mutual interest in further cooperation.
"We have been clear and categorical: we told our brothers in Taiwan they have been very generous and supportive to our country in many aspects," Morales Carazo said.
Future relations
He said that the future of Nicaraguan relations with China would depend on decisions made by the Beijing and Taipei governments in solving their differences.
Meanwhile, Yang said that Taiwan faced "substantial pressure" from Nicaragua's new political situation but added that President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) talked to Ortega on the phone last Friday and both had a good understanding of each other.
Yang stressed that the team to be led by Hou will not be on a special mission but a regular team that the ministry sends to any of Taiwan's allies that is changing government.
"The diplomatic team will talk about President Ortega's plans for Nicaragua and see how Taiwan can help them and adjust existing cooperation plans if required," Yang said.
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 2:23pm today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was 5.4 kilometers northeast of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 34.9 km, according to the CWA. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was the highest in Hualien County, where it measured 2 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 1 in Yilan county, Taichung, Nantou County, Changhua County and Yunlin County, the CWA said. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
‘WORSE THAN COMMUNISTS’: President William Lai has cracked down on his political enemies and has attempted to exterminate all opposition forces, the chairman said The legislature would motion for a presidential recall after May 20, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday at a protest themed “against green communists and dictatorship” in Taipei. Taiwan is supposed to be a peaceful homeland where people are united, but President William Lai (賴清德) has been polarizing and tearing apart society since his inauguration, Chu said. Lai must show his commitment to his job, otherwise a referendum could be initiated to recall him, he said. Democracy means the rule of the people, not the rule of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), but Lai has failed to fulfill his
RSS