Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) was this week in New York and met diplomatic allies on the sidelines of the 80th session of the UN General Assembly, according to a Facebook post and a source with knowledge of the matter.
Lin's visit came after he published an opinion article on the Web site of conservative US outlet Newsmax.
It was the first time a Taiwanese foreign minister is known to have been in New York during the so-called UN General Assembly week, for which world leaders gather in the city each year. Taiwan, formally known as the Republic of China, is barred from attending official UN General Assembly events as Beijing has held China's UN seat since 1971.
Photo: Screen grab from the Office of the President, Republic of Palau’s Facebook page
On Monday, Lin attended a reception in New York hosted by American Global Strategies (AGS), a consultancy set up by former US national security adviser Robert O'Brien and former US National Security Council chief of staff Alexander Gray, a source familiar with the event said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs declined to comment.
The Office of the President of Palau, one Taiwan's 12 diplomatic allies, published photographs on its Facebook page of Lin, showing him at the AGS reception with Palauan President Surangel Whipps Jr and Gray.
Gray served with O'Brien in the White House in the first administration of US President Donald Trump.
In the background of the photo showing Lin with Whipps and Gray is a US Department of State official who the source identified as Charles Haider, a special envoy for children's well-being.
The reception was held at Le Bernadin, a high-end French restaurant in Manhattan, which has three Michelin stars, the source said.
Taiwan is excluded from most international organizations due to objections by China.
The Department of State did not offer a comment when asked about Lin's New York visit.
Beijing, with which Trump is attempting to negotiate a major trade deal, regularly denounces any international recognition of Taiwan or contact between Taiwanese and foreign officials,
On Monday, the foreign ministers of South Korea, Japan and the US met on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly and expressed concern in a joint statement over China's “increasingly frequent destabilizing actions” around Taiwan.
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