The Costa Rican Directorate of Intelligence and Security recently sent five officials to Taiwan for security training, marking the first exchange between the two nations' governments since Costa Rica severed official diplomatic relations with Taiwan in 2007.
The officials came to Taiwan last month to participate in a 23-day national security and intelligence training course, Costa Rican newspaper La Nacion reported on Friday last week.
The Chinese embassy in Costa Rica issued a statement on Saturday last week saying the move contravened the “one China” policy and that it opposes interactions between Costa Rica and Taiwan.
Photo: CNA
Costa Rican citizens wrote on the embassy’s Facebook page expressing support for Taiwan as a free and democratic nation and criticizing China’s interference in Costa Rican affairs.
Tensions between China and Costa Rica have been increasing, with a Costa Rican court ruling in February confirming the exclusion of Huawei and other Chinese telecommunications companies from Costa Rica.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio praised Costa Rica for excluding Huawei from its local 5G network, calling it “a model for Latin America and the world,” when he met with Costa Rican President Rodrigo Chaves in San Jose in February.
The US began cooperating with Central American countries to block Huawei’s expansion during former US president Joe Biden’s administration and has labeled the company an information security risk. These efforts have become more aggressive since US President Donald Trump took office.
Panama has also announced that it is cooperating with the US to dismantle 13 telecommunication towers built by Huawei.
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