The chief secretary of Sao Tome and Principe’s presidential office arrived in Taipei yesterday on the heels of a visit to China by the president of one of Taiwan’s African allies that some speculated would lead to an end of formal ties with Taipei.
During his four-day visit, Amaro Couto is scheduled to meet with Presidential Office Secretary-General Timothy Yang (楊進添) and Minister of Foreign Affairs David Lin (林永樂), said Winston Hu (胡正浩), deputy director-general of the ministry’s Department of West Asian and African Affairs.
According to a diplomatic source, Taiwan is to ask Couto to provide a briefing on the recent visit by Sao Tomean President Manuel Pinto da Costa to China that reportedly included stops in Beijing and Shanghai.
The chief secretary’s visit is seen as a good opportunity to learn more about the details of Pinto da Costa’s trip, the source said.
On June 6, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement expressing the nation’s concern about Pinto da Costa’s China trip and asked Sao Tome and Principe to avoid damaging its long-standing diplomatic relations with Taiwan.
The statement also said that in a letter dated June 4, Pinto da Costa told President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) that the visit to Shanghai was being made in a private capacity to solicit investment in his nation’s deep-water harbor.
The Sao Tomean president also stressed in the letter that he cherished the friendly and cooperative relations with the Republic of China (ROC) and will continue to strengthen bilateral relations, the foreign ministry said.
Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Hua Chunying (華春瑩) tried last week to play down Pinto da Costa’s visit, saying that the only information she had was that the president was on a private visit to attend a “trade and business activity.”
Taiwan and Sao Tome and Principe have maintained close relations for many years. The West African nation established diplomatic relations with Taipei in 1997.
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