Countries that switched their diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China in the 1990s will find that it is increasingly hard for China to honor the cash aid it has promised, Taiwan's representative to the US Joseph Wu (
Wu's remarks were published on Friday by the US monthly the Washington Diplomat, which gave coverage to Beijing's squeezing of Taiwan's diplomatic relations with other countries.
Wu claimed that Beijing recently lured away Taiwan's diplomatic ally Costa Rica with a promise of US$430 million.
Although Taiwan has "been sincere" in assisting Costa Rica's development, the Central American country has tried to "hide its real intention" for establishing ties with China, Wu said.
"We have the feeling of being betrayed," he said.
The report said that Taiwan's official ties with Nicaragua and Panama are also not looking good, as Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, a Marxist, established diplomatic ties with Cuba, China, North Korea and Vietnam in the 1970s, and China remains the second-largest user of the Panama Canal after the US.
Wu admitted that although there is no sign of a domino effect on Taiwan's diplomatic relations with other countries, he said that Taiwanese authorities are concerned about China's "cash diplomacy" targeting its diplomatic allies.
"Taiwan offers aid to diplomatic allies, not cash but services and development," Wu said.
He added that Taiwan extends agricultural, medical and economic development assistance to diplomatic allies in accordance with their needs.
Noting that China still has a poverty problem in large parts of the country, Wu said that the more it "buys" Taiwan's diplomatic allies, the more financial burden it will suffer.
Regarding US-Taiwan ties, Wu said that although the countries maintain no official relations, the US is the most important friend of Taiwan.
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