Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) yesterday criticized Bolivia for its expression of solidarity with China following an earthquake that struck Taiwan.
At least 13 people were killed and more than 1,100 injured after the quake, which measured 7.2 on the Richter scale and magnitude 7.4 on the moment magnitude scale, struck off Hualien County at 7:58am on Wednesday.
On Friday, Bolivia’s foreign ministry issued a statement saying the country “expresses its solidarity with the sister People’s Republic of China, in the face of the loss of life and severe material damage caused by a large earthquake that occurred in recent hours off the coast of Taiwan.”
Photo: Daniel Ceng, EPA-EFE
“You shouldn’t be the evil, expansionist PRC’s pathetic puppet that jumps when Beijing says jump,” Wu said on X yesterday.
“Just like Taiwan, Bolivia is NOT part of communist China. No more, no less,” he added.
Separately, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs also condemned the Bolivian statement, saying it was “following the Chinese authoritarian government to spread false remarks internationally that belittle our country’s sovereignty.”
A magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck off Taitung County at 1:09pm today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 53km northeast of Taitung County Hall at a depth of 12.5km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Taitung County and Hualien County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Nantou County, Chiayi County, Yunlin County, Kaohsiung and Tainan, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage following the quake.
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