Burkina Faso yesterday severed ties with Taiwan, the second diplomatic ally to do so within a month, prompting Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) to tender his resignation.
However, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) did not sign off on Wu’s resignation, Presidential Office spokesman Alex Huang (黃重諺) told the Taipei Times last night.
Speaking at an impromptu news conference in Taipei yesterday evening, Wu said that although Burkina Faso has yet to establish diplomatic ties with Beijing, it goes without saying that “China is the sole factor” in the African nation’s decision.
Photo: Huang Yao-cheng, Taipei Times
“This is the second nation in a month, after the Dominican Republic, to have made such a move. I share the public’s sadness, anger and regret over these incidents,” said Wu, who only took over the helm of the ministry in February.
China’s repeated attempts to poach Taiwan’s diplomatic allies and suppress its presence in the international arena would not narrow the gap across the Taiwan Strait — it would only further anger Taiwanese, Wu said.
“I would like to again quote President Tsai’s oft-stated pledge that we will never succumb to Beijing’s pressure,” Wu said, adding that China’s actions, both diplomatically and militarily, constitute a unilateral change of the cross-strait “status quo.”
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs first noticed warning signs regarding Burkina Faso prior to Tsai’s state visit to Africa last month, when Burkinabe President Roch Kabore prioritized an international gathering over meeting with Tsai, Wu said.
Media speculation in Burkina Faso regarding the establishment of diplomatic relations with Beijing were another sign, Wu said.
The ministry became more concerned after Burkina Faso became the nation’s only ally to not publicly speak up for Taiwan’s World Health Assembly (WHA) bid, Wu said.
A high-level government official previously said on condition of anonymity that China had written to all of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies warning them against speaking for Taiwan at this year’s WHA.
The Republic of China established diplomatic relations with Burkina Faso in 1961, but Ouagadougou switched recognition to the People’s Republic of China in 1973. Taiwan and Burkina Faso resumed ties in 1994.
Burkinabe Minister of Foreign Affairs Alpha Barry in February last year had told reporters that his nation had rejected a Beijing offer of US$50 billion and had no plans to switch allegiances.
Taiwan has lost three other diplomatic allies to China since Tsai’s inauguration: Sao Tome and Principe in December 2016, Panama in June last year and the Dominican Republic on April 30.
Regarding Taiwan’s relations with its sole remaining African ally, Eswatini, Wu said that he has “huge confidence” in the stability of their ties.
“President Tsai visited Eswatini just last month and she has maintained a good relationship with Swazi King Mswati III,” Wu said. “The king is also scheduled to visit Taiwan next month to attend his son’s graduation ceremony.”
QUIET START: Nearly a week after applications opened, agencies did not announce or promote the program, nor did they explain how it differed from other visitor visas Taiwan has launched a six-month “digital nomad visitor visa” program for foreign nationals from its list of visa-exempt countries who meet financial eligibility criteria and provide proof of work contracts. To apply, foreign nationals must either provide proof that they have obtained a digital nomad visa issued by another country or demonstrate earnings based on age brackets, the Bureau of Consular Affairs said. Applicants aged 20 to 29 must show they earned an annual salary of at least US$20,000 or its equivalent in one of the past two years, while those aged 30 or older must provide proof they earned US$40,000 in
AIR DEFENSE: The Norwegian missile system has proved highly effective in Ukraine in its war against Russia, and the US has recommended it for Taiwan, an expert said The Norwegian Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS) Taiwan ordered from the US would be installed in strategically important positions in Taipei and New Taipei City to guard the region, the Ministry of National Defense said in statement yesterday. The air defense system would be deployed in Taipei’s Songshan District (松山) and New Taipei City’s Tamsui District (淡水), the ministry said, adding that the systems could be delivered as soon as the end of this year. The US Defense Security Cooperation Agency has previously said that three NASAMS would be sold to Taiwan. The weapons are part of the 17th US arms sale to
SERIOUS ALLEGATIONS: The suspects formed spy networks and paramilitary groups to kill government officials during a possible Chinese invasion, prosecutors said Prosecutors have indicted seven retired military officers, members of the Rehabilitation Alliance Party, for allegedly obtaining funds from China, and forming paramilitary groups and assassination squads in Taiwan to collaborate with Chinese troops in a possible war. The suspects contravened the National Security Act (國家安全法) by taking photos and drawing maps of key radar stations, missile installations and the American Institute in Taiwan’s headquarters in Taipei, prosecutors said. They allegedly prepared to collaborate with China during a possible invasion of Taiwan, prosecutors said. Retired military officer Chu Hung-i (屈宏義), 62, a Republic of China Army Academy graduate, went to China
UNITY MESSAGE: Rather than focusing on what Trump said on the campaign trail about Taiwan, Taipei should be willing to engage with the US, Pompeo said Taiwan plays a key role in Washington’s model of deterrence against China, former US secretary of state Mike Pompeo said in a speech in Taipei yesterday. During US president-elect Donald Trump’s first term, “we had developed what we believe was a pretty effective model of deterrence against adversaries who wanted to undermine the set of rules and values that the people of Taiwan and the people of the US hold dear,” Pompeo said at a forum organized by the Formosa Republican Association. “Succeeding in continuing to build this model will not solely rest at the feet of president Trump and his team,
RSS