Palau will continue to support Taiwan amid tensions in the Indo-Pacific region, Palauan President Surangel Whipps Jr said at a ceremony in Taipei.
Whipps, who was greeted by President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) at a welcome ceremony with military honors, said that Palauans “are committed to supporting Taiwan, despite the mounting aggression in our region.”
He was likely referring to the week-long military exercises conducted by China following a visit on Aug. 2 and 3 by US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Photo: Ann Wang, Reuters
Palauans “deeply value the friendship between our two nations” based on a shared commitment to preserving peace, freedom, democracy and human rights, he said.
Taiwan and Palau have engaged in a maritime partnership that contributes to the maintenance of peace, security and stability in the Indo-Pacific region, Whipps said.
“Palau looks forward to continuing our strong friendship with Taiwan,” Whipps said. “We know that we are stronger together, and through cooperation, we can overcome the challenges our nations continue to face now and in the future.”
Tsai said Taiwan greatly appreciates its friendship with Palau and the government looks forward to deepening bilateral ties in numerous domains.
Over the past two decades, the two nations have “helped and supported each other [in] overcoming many challenges,” Tsai said, mentioning in particular the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.
Palau, which officially established diplomatic relations with the Republic of China (ROC) in 1999, is one of the nation’s 14 diplomatic allies.
The ceremony was followed by a meeting between Tsai and Whipps and a banquet hosted by Tsai for the Palauan delegation.
Tsai and Whipps also witnessed the signing of an agreement on public finance cooperation between the two countries.
The agreement would promote bilateral collaboration in the area of public finance through meetings, seminars, training sessions and mutual consultations, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
Under the agreement, Taiwan would share its best practices in achieving fiscal discipline and the digitization of tax and customs systems, as well as public debt management, it said.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Tsai said she hoped the agreement would pave the way for further cooperation in various areas between Taiwan and Palau, and that together the two nations would contribute to the prosperity and stability of the Asia-Pacific region.
Whipps, who assumed the presidency in January last year, is to give a speech at the opening of the Yushan Forum today and attend the Double Ten National Day celebration on Monday, the ministry said.
The ministry did not say how long the Palauan delegation is to stay in Taiwan, but said it would make an announcement at an appropriate time.
Taiwan has received more than US$70 million in royalties as of the end of last year from developing the F-16V jet as countries worldwide purchase or upgrade to this popular model, government and military officials said on Saturday. Taiwan funded the development of the F-16V jet and ended up the sole investor as other countries withdrew from the program. Now the F-16V is increasingly popular and countries must pay Taiwan a percentage in royalties when they purchase new F-16V aircraft or upgrade older F-16 models. The next five years are expected to be the peak for these royalties, with Taiwan potentially earning
POSITIVE DEVELOPMENT: Japan and the US are expected to hold in-depth discussions on Taiwan-related issues during the meeting next month, Japanese sources said The holding of a Japan-US leaders’ meeting ahead of US President Donald Trump’s visit to China is positive news for Taiwan, former Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association representative Hiroyasu Izumi said yesterday. After the Liberal Democratic Party’s landslide victory in Japan’s House of Representatives election, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is scheduled to visit the US next month, where she is to meet with Trump ahead of the US president’s planned visit to China from March 31 to April 2 for a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平). Japan and the US are expected to hold in-depth discussions on Taiwan-related issues during the
‘LIKE-MINDED PARTNER’: Tako van Popta said it would be inappropriate to delay signing the deal with Taiwan because of China, adding he would promote the issue Canadian senators have stressed Taiwan’s importance for international trade and expressed enthusiasm for ensuring the Taiwan-Canada trade cooperation framework agreement is implemented this year. Representative to Canada Harry Tseng (曾厚仁) in an interview with the Central News Agency (CNA) said he was increasingly uneasy about Ottawa’s delays in signing the agreement, especially as Ottawa has warmed toward Beijing. There are “no negotiations left. Not only [is it] initialed, we have three versions of the text ready: English, French and Mandarin,” Tseng said. “That tells you how close we are to the final signature.” Tseng said that he hoped Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney
STAY IN YOUR LANE: As the US and Israel attack Iran, the ministry has warned China not to overstep by including Taiwanese citizens in its evacuation orders The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday rebuked a statement by China’s embassy in Israel that it would evacuate Taiwanese holders of Chinese travel documents from Israel amid the latter’s escalating conflict with Iran. Tensions have risen across the Middle East in the wake of US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran beginning Saturday. China subsequently issued an evacuation notice for its citizens. In a news release, the Chinese embassy in Israel said holders of “Taiwan compatriot permits (台胞證)” issued to Taiwanese nationals by Chinese authorities for travel to China — could register for evacuation to Egypt. In Taipei, the ministry yesterday said Taiwan
RSS