Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Tien Chung-kwang (田中光) on Monday night departed for Tuvalu to congratulate the Pacific ally’s new government, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday.
Acting as President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) special envoy, Tien is to attend a series of celebrations in the wake of the appointment of Tuvaluan Prime Minister Feleti Teo late last month and his newly formed Cabinet, the ministry said in a news release.
Aside from meeting with Teo, Tien is scheduled to meet with Tuvaluan Governor-General Tofiga Falani and Tuvaluan Minister of Foreign Affairs, Labor and Trade Paulson Panapa to discuss bilateral cooperation projects, it said.
Photo: Taipei Times
It could take two days for Tien to arrive in Tuvalu, it said, adding that he is scheduled to return on Saturday.
Taiwan established diplomatic relations with Tuvalu in 1979, but there were concerns before Teo was appointed on Feb. 26 that the nation’s ties with the Pacific island country could be in jeopardy.
Former Tuvaluan minister of finance Seve Paeniu, who was re-elected as a member of parliament on Jan. 26 and vied for the prime minister seat, told Reuters in January that Tuvalu’s ties with Taiwan “need to be debated and reviewed in the new parliament.”
Paeniu said that Tuvaluans wanted more financial support from the international community to help the nation address climate change and other issues.
After being appointed as prime minister unopposed, Teo immediately announced that his government was sticking with Taipei and would not switch recognition to Beijing.
“Our ties with Taiwan are purely based on democratic principles and they have been very loyal to us,” Teo told The Associated Press in an interview on Feb. 26.
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