The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) was baffled yesterday by a statement made by Honduran President Porfirio Lobo Sosa indicating his intention to establish diplomatic ties with China, but remained confident that Taiwan’s relationship with its Central American ally remained strong.
The bilateral relationship with Honduras remains “normal” and “solid” and “will not be affected” even if the country moves to develop economic and trade relations with China, Minister of Foreign Affairs David Lin (林永樂) said.
The statement was posted on the Web site of the Presidential Office of Honduras on Wednesday last week, two days after Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Simon Ko (柯森耀) said that while the ministry was not happy to see an ally establish a trade office in China, it did not oppose allies developing economic ties with Beijing.
However, Lobo’s statement said that he intends to begin diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China, not just trade ties.
Ambassador to Honduras Joseph Kuo (郭永樑) met with Honduran Foreign Minister Arturo Corrales Alvarez and an official at Lobo’s office on Friday, the ministry said.
Kuo received “assurances” from the Lobo administration that the country had yet to finalize a plan to set up a trade office in China and that its ties to Taiwan remain solid and will not be affected by Tegucigalpa forging an economic and trade relationship with Beijing, Lin said.
Corrales made it very clear to Kuo that Honduras’ relationship with China will not have repercussions on its relationship with Taiwan, Lin said.
“Those are clear-cut and important assurances. Corrales offered the assurances on behalf of the Honduran government, the president and the vice president,” Lin said.
However, the ministry was unable to explain the discrepancy between Lobo’s statement and the information Kuo received from Corrales and the Honduran presidential office.
The director-general of the ministry’s Department of Latin American and Caribbean Affairs, Jaime Wu (吳進木), said the ministry expects to learn more about Lobo’s China policy after Kuo meets with Lobo “in a day or two.”
Asked to interpret whether the Honduran president had suggested the possibility of his country seeking diplomatic ties with Taiwan and China, Lin said that was a hypothetical question.
Lin said that Taipei does not consider it acceptable for it’s diplomatic allies to recognize China while maintaining diplomatic ties with Taiwan.
“We don’t think double recognition is acceptable and we don’t think that will happen,” Lin said.
The principle guiding President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) “flexible diplomacy” has been that Taiwan and China do not attempt to poach each other’s diplomatic allies, Lin said.
Costa Rica sent a group of intelligence officials to Taiwan for a short-term training program, the first time the Central American country has done so since the countries ended official diplomatic relations in 2007, a Costa Rican media outlet reported last week. Five officials from the Costa Rican Directorate of Intelligence and Security last month spent 23 days in Taipei undergoing a series of training sessions focused on national security, La Nacion reported on Friday, quoting unnamed sources. The Costa Rican government has not confirmed the report. The Chinese embassy in Costa Rica protested the news, saying in a statement issued the same
Taiwan is to extend its visa-waiver program for Philippine passport holders for another year, starting on Aug. 1, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said on Friday. Lin made the announcement during a reception in Taipei marking the 127th anniversary of Philippine independence and the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) in Taiwan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The decision reflected Taiwan’s commitment to deepening exchanges with the Philippines, the statement cited Lin as saying, adding that it was a key partner under the New Southbound Policy launched in 2016. Lin also expressed hope
Temperatures in New Taipei City’s Sindian District (新店) climbed past 37°C yesterday, as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) issued heat alerts for 16 municipalities, warning the public of intense heat expected across Taiwan. The hottest location in Taiwan was in Sindian, where the mercury reached 37.5°C at about 2pm, according to CWA data. Taipei’s Shilin District (士林) recorded a temperature of 37.4°C at noon, Taitung County’s Jinfeng Township (金峰) at 12:50 pm logged a temperature of 37.4°C and Miaoli County’s Toufen Township (頭份) reached 36.7°C at 11:40am, the CWA said. The weather agency yesterday issued a yellow level information notice for Taipei, New
CASE: Prosecutors have requested heavy sentences, citing a lack of remorse and the defendants’ role in ‘undermining the country’s democratic foundations’ Five people affiliated with the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), including senior staff from the party’s Taipei branch, were indicted yesterday for allegedly forging thousands of signatures to recall two Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers. Those indicted include KMT Taipei chapter director Huang Lu Chin-ru (黃呂錦茹), secretary-general Chu Wen-ching (初文卿) and secretary Yao Fu-wen (姚富文), the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said in a news release. Prosecutors said the three were responsible for fabricating 5,211 signature forms — 2,537 related to the recall of DPP Legislator Wu Pei-yi (吳沛憶) and 2,674 for DPP Legislator Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) — with forged entries accounting for