The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Taiwan

  • Taiwan urges renewal of trade deal with Nigeria to expand investments

    Taiwan urges renewal of trade deal with Nigeria to expand investments

    Taiwan’S Ambassador to Nigeria and Representative, Taipei Trade Office, Andy Yih-Ping Liu, has urged Nigeria to renew the investment protection agreement it signed with his country 33 years ago.

    Yih-Ping Liu, who spoke in Lagos at a media forum, said the renewal of the trade agreement signed in 1991, is essential to enhancing Taiwan’s trade with Nigeria.

    He noted that former Military Head of State Ibrahim Babangida’s administration established diplomatic relations with Taiwan in 1991, stressing that the renewal of the agreement is essential to provide a safer climate for investment and investors from both countries.

    The diplomat said his country’s elected president would be sworn into office on May 20, stressing that Taiwan is standing strong against any threat from China.

    Read Also: What Nigerians need to know about China’s claim on Taiwan

    Taiwan’s trade with Nigeria is about $1 billion since 2022. However, investors from the Asian country have indicated interest to expand investments in technology, education, agriculture, among others.

    Liu stated that Taiwan is working with the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment to sign an enhanced trade agreement with Taiwan as his home country recently did with the British Government.

    “If Nigerians would like to invest in Taiwan, to set up companies, we welcome that but we need the investment protection agreement.

    “If the investment protection agreement is signed today, then the Nigerian government should consider to have enhanced trade and economic agreement with us. The British have signed with you and the British have signed with us. How come Nigeria has not signed with Taiwan?

    “For the past two years, that agreement has not been signed. The renewal has not been signed. About one and half months ago, the British Government and Nigerian Government signed the same agreement. At the same time, in November last year, the Canadian government and Taiwan signed an enhanced investment agreement. So the British and Canada are moving very fast with Taiwan but Nigeria has been trapped,” he said.

    “The Chinese will not like to see that. They want the world to see Taiwan as an island attached to China, but it is not. So, we would like to see the rest of the world view Taiwan as a trustworthy partner.

    “At the same time, we are a legitimate government with our constitution and the right to elect a president. So, we are not different from any country that has been protecting their  national interest and democratic systems,” he said.

    Liu said Taiwan will continue to reach out to countries that share similar democratic values, adding that though their neighbour have been threatening and bullying other nations to avoid them, it is up to those nations to take their decisions.

    The diplomat noted that by conducting its election early this year and hoping to handover on May 20, it demonstrates that the nation is a sovereign state.

    “So, we cannot challenge other countries to give us diplomatic recognition, but we hope that having a democratically elected president and the fact that the new government will be sworn in soon, demonstrate to the rest of the world that we are a sovereign state.”

    On the challenges likely to face the new government, he said his country is facing a generational challenge owing to the unwillingness of their youths to get married or procreate early.

    Liu said energy, technological improvements and trade competitiveness may be some of the issues that will face the new government.

    “Our birth rate is really low, so our government has asked us to encourage our new generation to get married, to get more children, to build a stronger workforce and then to have our aging population to be well taken care of.

    “Health and welfare could be another challenge. So, each government has its challenges, but I think the new government will seriously need to plan on how to encourage young people to get married and have children. Such will promote sustainability and development,” he added.

  • Taiwan President to visit African ally Eswatini

    Taiwan President to visit African ally Eswatini

    President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan is set to travel to African ally Eswatini Tuesday for a four-day visit.

    The visit is to promote “sustainable cooperation” between the two countries, Presidential Office spokeswoman Olivia Lin said during a news conference in Taipei.

    The visit will demonstrate the importance Taiwan attaches to its ties with Eswatini, (formerly called Swaziland) and allow both sides to further collaborate, she said.

    Deputy Foreign Minister, Lee Chun, said Tsai was invited to Eswatini to attend the celebrations marking the 55th anniversary of the African nation’s independence and the 55th birthday of its current ruler King Mswati III on Sept. 6.

    The king has reigned over Eswatini, one of a handful of absolute monarchies in the world, since 1986.

    Tsai and her delegation, which also includes Economics Minister Wang Mei-hua and Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chi-mai, will travel there and back on direct flights operated by Taiwan-based China Airlines, according to Lee.

    Tsai, after attending the September 6 celebrations, will visit the Referral and Emergency Complex of the Mbabane Government Hospital, a facility that Taiwan’s government has funded, and take part in a dinner hosted by the king.

  • China criticises U.S. over Taiwan travel bill

    China criticises U.S. over Taiwan travel bill

    China on Thursday expressed its disapproval with the United States over a bill passed by the U.S. Senate seeking closer ties with Taiwan.

    “Although the bill is not legally binding, China strongly and resolutely opposes it and has lodged formal protests with Washington,’’ Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson, Hua Chunying, said.

    The bill, passed unanimously by the U.S. Senate on Wednesday, allows U.S. officials at all levels to travel to Taiwan for meetings.

    It also permits high-level Taiwanese officials to enter the U.S. “under respectful conditions’’ to meet with their U.S. counterparts.

    Read Also:  China Devt Bank, UBA sign $100m loan for SMEs in Africa

    Report says the legislation now only needs U.S. President Donald Trump’s signature.

    Beijing, through its “One China’’ policy, prevents other nations from having formal ties with self-governing Taiwan, which it regards as a breakaway province.

    The spat came amid rising trade tensions between the world’s two largest economies.

    Top Chinese economic advisor Liu He is currently in Washington, reportedly to avert a trade war between the two countries.

    NAN

  • Xi says China-U.S. relations affected by ‘negative factors’

    Xi says China-U.S. relations affected by ‘negative factors’

    China-U.S. relations have been affected by some “negative factors,” Chinese President Xi Jinping told President Donald Trump during a phone call on Monday.

    The conversation came after a series of recent actions by the U.S. related to Taiwan, North Korea and the South China Sea that have been labeled by Beijing as “wrong decisions” or “provocations.”

    Xi told Trump he hoped the U.S. would handle Taiwan-related issues appropriately and that China places great importance on Trump’s reaffirmation of the “One China” policy, which prohibits countries that have diplomatic relations with Beijing from pursuing official ties with Taiwan, according to state broadcaster CCTV.

    On Thursday, the U.S. government angered Beijing when it approved a 1.4-billion-dollar arms sale to Taiwan, which Beijing sees as a breakaway province.

    China asked the U.S. to cancel the deal lest it would damage “China-US relations and cooperation in important fields,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry said Friday.

    A U.S. government official said US arms sales to Taiwan reflect no change in the “one China” policy and are based on an assessment of Taiwan’s defence needs.

    The U.S. government also announced on Thursday it had imposed sanctions against China’s Bank of Dandong over its alleged dealings with North Korea.

    China’s Foreign Ministry retorted that the sanctions were a “wrong decision” made arbitrarily by the US outside the framework of the UN Security Council.

    on Sunday, a U.S. warship sailed close to a disputed island in the South China Sea claimed by China, prompting an angry response from Beijing, which described the action as a “serious provocation.”

    The guided-missile destroyer USS Stethem came within 12 miles of an island in the Paracel Archipelago, which is claimed by China, Taiwan and Vietnam, CNN reported.

    The ship was part of a U.S. Navy “freedom of navigation exercise,” the news network added.

    The operation “infringed upon China’s sovereignty, disrupted peace, security and order of the relevant waters and put in jeopardy the facilities and personnel on the Chinese islands, and thus constitutes a serious political and military provocation,” said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang.

    China had dispatched military vessels and fighter planes to warn the U.S. vessel, said Wu Qian, a spokesperson for China’s Ministry of National Defense.

    “The Chinese side will continue to take all necessary means to defend national sovereignty and security,” Lu added.

    China claims almost the entire South China Sea, a key shipping lane that is believed to be rich in resources. An international court in 2016 invalidated China’s claims to the region in a case filed by the Philippines, but Beijing does not recognise the ruling.

    This is the second “freedom of navigation operation” that has taken place during Donald Trump’s presidency.

    The exercises were done routinely under the Obama administration, however, Trump was at first mostly silent on the South China Sea issue while he turned to China for help in reining in the nuclear threat from North Korea.

    Trump and Xi also discussed the nuclear threat from North Korea during the phone call.

    Both leaders “reaffirmed their commitment to a denuclearised Korean Peninsula,” the White House said.

  • Taiwan to order Nigerian office to leave Taipei

    Taiwan will tell the Nigerian trade office to move out of Taipei in a reciprocal move, following the action taken by Abuja against Taipei, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday.

    The ministry recalled the January order by the federal government that Taiwan should move its office from Abuja, change the name of the office — the Trade Mission of Republic of China (Taiwan) in the federal capital — and cut the number of staff in the office.

    It also demanded on March 31 that Morgan Chao, director of the trade office, leave the country, saying that it could not guarantee his safety. Chao has since returned to Taiwan.

    Nigeria then sent military personnel on June 30 to seal off the trade office and forced the staff to leave.

    The ministry has lodged a serious protest and expressed deep regret over the matter, it said.

    The ministry said that there are still four staff of the trade office in Abuja, and they have started relocating to Lagos.

    After the completion of the relocation, it will adopt reciprocal moves and tell Nigeria’s trade office to move out of Taipei.

    Taiwan believes Nigeria’s approach is part of stepped-up efforts by the Peoples Republic of China to pressure Taiwan since the administration of President Tsai Ing-wen took office on May 20, 2016 and adopted a less conciliatory attitude toward China than its predecessor.

    In mid-June, Panama announced it was switching diplomatic ties from Taipei to Beijing and the cutting of all official ties with Taiwan, a decision that leaves only 20 countries that officially recognize the Taiwan.

     

  • China asks U.S. to cancel weapons deal with Taiwan

    China asks U.S. to cancel weapons deal with Taiwan

    China on Friday strongly opposed a plan to sell weapons worth 1.4 billion dollars to Taiwan, and has asked the U.S. to cancel the deal.

    A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson,, said the sale of military equipment, which the U.S. State Department approved Thursday, threatens U.S.-China diplomatic relations.

    “The U.S. should revoke the weapons deal plan in order to avoid damaging China-US relations and cooperation in important fields,” Lu said.

    China has filed “solemn representations” with the U.S. on the matter and “stresses that no one can shake the Chinese government’s determination to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity,” he added.

    Beijing regards Taiwan as part of China’s territory and prohibits countries with which it has diplomatic relations from pursuing official ties with Taiwan.

    A U.S. government official said the arms sales to Taiwan reflect no change in the long-standing One China policy, which recognises the People’s Republic of China.

    He said that the sales comply with the Taiwan Relations Act and are based on an assessment of Taiwan’s defence needs.

    The equipment includes technical support for early warning radar surveillance, missiles and torpedoes.

    The official said the sales represent upgrades, including equipment needed to convert current defensive systems from analogue to digital.

    “There is continuity here, the United States has been doing defence sales with Taiwan for 50 years or so, so nothing has changed,” said State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert.

    Taiwan government spokesman Sidney Lin said the sale increases the country’s self-defence abilities and “confidence and ability to maintain the status quo of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.”

    Lai I-chung, a senior political analyst of Taiwan Thinktank, said the approval of the arms sale showed that relations between Taiwan and the U.S. remained steady, according to the Central News Agency.

    Under the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act, the U.S. assures “Taiwan’s ability to maintain a sufficient self-defence capability.”

    The last U.S. arms sales to Taiwan, worth 1.83 billion US dollars, was authorised by the Obama administration in December 2015.

  • Burkina Faso snubs China’s $50b largesse to ditch Taiwan

    Burkina Faso rejected offers of $50 billion (NT$1.5 trillion) from China to dump Taiwan and switch recognition to Beijing, the African country’s foreign minister told Bloomberg, in a report published yesterday.

    After a sudden decision by Sao Tome and Principe last month, Taiwan has been left with only two official diplomatic allies in the continent, Burkina Faso and Swaziland, out of 21 allies worldwide.

    According to Bloomberg, people and companies with links to China have been making offers to the two African countries to abandon Taiwan.

    “We get outrageous proposals telling us, ‘if you sign with Beijing we’ll offer you $50 billion or even more,’” Bloomberg quoted Burkina Faso Foreign Minister Alpha Barry as saying. “Taiwan is our friend and our partner. We’re happy and we see no reason to reconsider the relationship,” the reporters quoted Barry.

    The minister said talks with Taiwan last September resulted in subsidies of $47 million (NT$1.4 billion) spread over two years for sectors like education, agriculture and defense. Worker training programs and tuition for some university students are also offered by Taiwan, Bloomberg noted.

    Taiwan’s other African ally, landlocked Swaziland, also emphasised it was not interested in dollar diplomacy. “We’re very happy with our relationship and intend to maintain it for a very long time because our friendship is based on our national interest and not on the size of Taiwan’s wallet,” Bloomberg quoted Swaziland government spokesman Percy Simelane.

    Last year, China intensified relations with Gambia, which ended ties to Taiwan in 2013. Just earlier this month, Nigeria, which doesn’t even have official links with Taipei, ordered the island to close its trade mission in the capital Abuja and move it to Lagos, its most populated city.

  • Nigeria didn’t cut ties with Taiwan – Presidency

    The Presidency on Thursday dismissed as incorrect media reports claiming that Nigeria has cut ties with Taiwan.

    The Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to the President, Garba Shehu, disclosed this in a statement in Abuja.

    The statement said: “The correct position is that the official relationship between Nigeria and Taiwan has been at the level of trade representation and this has not changed from what it used to be.

    “Taiwan trade office is the only Taiwanese representation in Nigeria and Nigeria’s trade office in Taipei is our only representation in Taiwan.

    “Nigeria recognises and will sustain the ‘One China’ policy and nothing has happened so far to change that level of relationship.”

     

  • ‘Nigeria wants us to move its trade office’

    ‘Nigeria wants us to move its trade office’

    Taiwan on Thursday, objected to a Nigerian request to the Island to relocate its representative office  from Abuja, a request Taiwan sees as more pressure by China to isolate it.

    Beijing regards Taiwan as a renegade province, ineligible for state-to-state relations, and to be taken back by force if necessary, especially if it makes moves toward independence.

    Taiwan has no diplomatic ties with Nigeria, but has an office for handling business affairs in Abuja.

    However, Taiwan’s foreign ministry said that Nigeria has asked Taipei to move its office from Abuja to Lagos.

    Taiwan called on Nigeria to consider the issue as both sides have an understanding based on reciprocity, under which Nigeria runs a trade office in Taiwan’s capital, Taipei.

    “The foreign ministry urges Nigeria to leave room for discussion.

    “The foreign ministry seriously objects and condemns the unreasonable actions by the Nigerian government,” Taiwan’s Ministry said referring to the request to move the trade office.

    Nigerian officials met their Chinese counterparts in Abuja on Wednesday and pledged to stick to Beijing’s “one China” policy, that Taiwan is a part of China, media reported.

    “China affirms and greatly appreciates Nigeria’s support for the ‘one China’ principle,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang told a regular news briefing in Beijing.

  • Nigeria severes diplomatic relations with Taiwan

    The Federal Government on Wednesday says she will no longer recognise Taiwan as a country but rather pledged support for One China.

    The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Geoffrey Onyeama, stated this while answering questions from newsmen after a joint news conference with the Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs in Abuja.

    Onyeama said Nigeria had withdrawn all diplomatic relations with Taiwan as a country, adding that Taiwanese office in Abuja would be shut down and be relocated to Lagos.

    According to him, Nigeria has communicated Taiwan and they are moving to Lagos as soon as possible.

    “Taiwan will stop enjoying any privileges because it is not a country that is recognised under international law and under the position we have taken internationally we recognise the people of China.

    “Taiwan will not have any diplomatic representation in Nigeria and also they will be moving to Lagos to the extent that they function as a trade mission with a skeletal staff.

    “Chinese Government does not oppose trading with Taiwan as such as long there is no formal contact with the Government that will suggest recognition of Taiwan as sovereign country,” he said.

    According to him, China does not oppose relationship with Taiwan in the level of trade but not on government to government level.

    The minister, however, said that Nigeria was not pressurised to take the decision, noting that the development was a bit of anormally on the side of Nigeria

    He said that Nigeria recognised the People’s Republic of China as country because Nigeria was one the leading African nations that fought for China to reclaim its seat at the UN Security Council from Taiwan.

    He said the step being taken was to right the wrong that one could not specifically say how it came.

    “It was not very clear how it got into Nigeria system – an arrangement for the Taiwan for a trade mission.

    “And in grating the right of the trade mission it did not accurately reflect the nature of relationship between Nigeria and Taiwan,” he said.

    Onyeama stated that the country took the decision to remove any iota of doubt in the mind of the Chinese people.

    He said on the issue of building trust, the international community had embraced one China and China is a member of the United Nations and we don’t want to leave any doubt on the issue.

    The minister stressed that Nigeria would adhere to it completely and there is no ambiguity at all.

    He said Nigeria as a nation would do everything to realise the One China Policy as well as any effort that would promote the peace and well being of the People’s Republic of China.

    According to Onyeama, China is one of the countries that have been in full support of reforms in the UN that would see Africa having two seats at the UN Security Council, as such deserved to be supported in her unification drive of One China. (NAN)