The government on Thursday pledged to take legal action against Nicaragua over the Central American country’s confiscation of Taiwan’s former embassy, after the nations ended official diplomatic relations earlier this month.
Taipei condemned Managua for the “unlawful” confiscation of its former diplomatic property, while demanding that Nicaragua reverse its action immediately, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.
“Taiwan will pursue appropriate international legal proceedings to protect its diplomatic property and ensure that Nicaragua is held accountable for its internationally wrongful act,” it said without elaborating.
Photo: Richie B. Tongo, EPA-EFE
The announcement came after Nicaraguan media reported that its government would confiscate Taiwan’s former embassy premises, which Taipei had handed over to the Catholic Church before Taiwanese staff departed, following the severance of official ties on Dec. 10.
As Nicaragua recognizes only “one China” represented by Beijing, the Nicaraguan government said the property belongs to the People’s Republic of China, La Prensa reported on Monday.
Taiwan has previously protested the decision, saying that it decided to sell its embassy premises to the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Managua for the symbolic price of US$1 after the government of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega set a two-week deadline for Taiwanese staff to leave by Thursday last week.
To ensure its assets were properly secured, Taiwan sold the property, with both sides sealing the transfer, which was witnessed by a local lawyer on Wednesday last week, the ministry said.
The ministry on Thursday said the premises and property of the former Embassy of the Republic of China in Nicaragua are diplomatic assets legally procured by the Taiwanese government from 1990.
Citing Article 45 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, the ministry said that Nicaragua should honor its obligations under international law to protect the premises and property of the embassy following the termination of diplomatic relations.
Instead of doing so, Nicaragua refused to accept an agreement Taiwan reached to entrust the custody of its former embassy with a third country, the ministry said.
The rejection was made in contravention of international conventions, it said, adding that due to extreme time constraints, Taiwan sold its premises to the Catholic Church.
The ministry said that the unlawful behavior of Beijing and Managua in seizing and encroaching upon property that Taiwan had already sold to the Catholic Church “cannot be tolerated under the rules-based international legal order, and will undoubtedly be met with disdain in the civilized world.”
The Ministry of Education (MOE) is to launch a new program to encourage international students to stay in Taiwan and explore job opportunities here after graduation, Deputy Minister of Education Yeh Ping-cheng (葉丙成) said on Friday. The government would provide full scholarships for international students to further their studies for two years in Taiwan, so those who want to pursue a master’s degree can consider applying for the program, he said. The fields included are science, technology, engineering, mathematics, semiconductors and finance, Yeh added. The program, called “Intense 2+2,” would also assist international students who completed the two years of further studies in
The brilliant blue waters, thick foliage and bucolic atmosphere on this seemingly idyllic archipelago deep in the Pacific Ocean belie the key role it now plays in a titanic geopolitical struggle. Palau is again on the front line as China, and the US and its allies prepare their forces in an intensifying contest for control over the Asia-Pacific region. The democratic nation of just 17,000 people hosts US-controlled airstrips and soon-to-be-completed radar installations that the US military describes as “critical” to monitoring vast swathes of water and airspace. It is also a key piece of the second island chain, a string of
Taiwan will now have four additional national holidays after the Legislative Yuan passed an amendment today, which also made Labor Day a national holiday for all sectors. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) used their majority in the Legislative Yuan to pass the amendment to the Act on Implementing Memorial Days and State Holidays (紀念日及節日實施辦法), which the parties jointly proposed, in its third and final reading today. The legislature passed the bill to amend the act, which is currently enforced administratively, raising it to the legal level. The new legislation recognizes Confucius’ birthday on Sept. 28, the
A magnitude 5.9 earthquake that struck about 33km off the coast of Hualien City was the "main shock" in a series of quakes in the area, with aftershocks expected over the next three days, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Prior to the magnitude 5.9 quake shaking most of Taiwan at 6:53pm yesterday, six other earthquakes stronger than a magnitude of 4, starting with a magnitude 5.5 quake at 6:09pm, occurred in the area. CWA Seismological Center Director Wu Chien-fu (吳健富) confirmed that the quakes were all part of the same series and that the magnitude 5.5 temblor was
RSS