Visiting Tuvaluan Prime Minister Kausea Natano yesterday said his country would “stand firm to remain a lasting and loyal ally” of Taiwan.
Natano made the pledge at a ceremony in Taipei marking his first visit to Taiwan as prime minister since taking office in 2019.
At a military ceremony hosted by President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) in front of the Presidential Office Building, Natano said his visit was a “testament of our shared and genuine commitment to our long-standing friendship forged since 1979,” when the two nations established diplomatic relations.
Photo: CNA
“These 43 years ... will be a lasting, genuine, endurable partnership between us,” he said.
In times of uncertainty, his country continues to “stand firm in our commitment to remain a lasting and loyal ally of the ROC,” Natano said, using Taiwan’s official name, the Republic of China.
The cornerstone of bilateral ties is the shared principles of democracy, trust, human rights and individual freedoms, he said.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
Natano also thanked Taiwan for the support it offered to his country over the past decades.
Tsai thanked Natano for the support Tuvalu has shown Taiwan on the international stage and for its “invaluable friendship.”
The two sides would exchange views on international development and issues of mutual interests during the visit, and discuss ways to further enhance ties, Tsai said.
During the military ceremony, Natano and a delegation of Tuvaluan officials were greeted with a 21-gun salute, followed by the playing of the national anthems of both countries.
Tsai and Natano then observed a parade of honor guards and military bands.
In the afternoon, Natano and Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) signed a joint communique to reaffirm diplomatic relations ahead of the 43rd anniversary of the establishment of bilateral ties later this month.
The delegation would also sign two agreements on police and coast guard cooperation with the Ministry of the Interior and the Ocean Affairs Council respectively, as well as a memorandum of understanding with Kaohsiung-based National Sun Yat-sen University on education and maritime research, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
The delegation arrived on Saturday and is to depart on Friday.
Tuvalu is one of 14 UN member states that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan.
Taipei lost two Pacific allies to Beijing in 2019: the Solomon Islands and Kiribati.
Nauru, Palau and the Marshall Islands have remained with Taipei.
Additional reporting by Reuters
INVESTIGATION: The case is the latest instance of a DPP figure being implicated in an espionage network accused of allegedly leaking information to Chinese intelligence Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) member Ho Jen-chieh (何仁傑) was detained and held incommunicado yesterday on suspicion of spying for China during his tenure as assistant to then-minister of foreign affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮). The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said Ho was implicated during its investigation into alleged spying activities by former Presidential Office consultant Wu Shang-yu (吳尚雨). Prosecutors said there is reason to believe Ho breached the National Security Act (國家安全法) by leaking classified Ministry of Foreign Affairs information to Chinese intelligence. Following interrogation, prosecutors petitioned the Taipei District Court to detain Ho, citing concerns over potential collusion or tampering of evidence. The
Seventy percent of middle and elementary schools now conduct English classes entirely in English, the Ministry of Education said, as it encourages schools nationwide to adopt this practice Minister of Education (MOE) Cheng Ying-yao (鄭英耀) is scheduled to present a report on the government’s bilingual education policy to the Legislative Yuan’s Education and Culture Committee today. The report would outline strategies aimed at expanding access to education, reducing regional disparities and improving talent cultivation. Implementation of bilingual education policies has varied across local governments, occasionally drawing public criticism. For example, some schools have required teachers of non-English subjects to pass English proficiency
‘FORM OF PROTEST’: The German Institute Taipei said it was ‘shocked’ to see Nazi symbolism used in connection with political aims as it condemned the incident Sung Chien-liang (宋建樑), who led efforts to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Kun-cheng (李坤城), was released on bail of NT$80,000 yesterday amid an outcry over a Nazi armband he wore to questioning the night before. Sung arrived at the New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office for questioning in a recall petition forgery case on Tuesday night wearing a red armband bearing a swastika, carrying a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf and giving a Nazi salute. Sung left the building at 1:15am without the armband and apparently covering the book with a coat. This is a serious international scandal and Chinese
TRADE: The premier pledged safeguards on ‘Made in Taiwan’ labeling, anti-dumping measures and stricter export controls to strengthen its position in trade talks Products labeled “made in Taiwan” must be genuinely made in Taiwan, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday, vowing to enforce strict safeguards against “origin laundering” and initiate anti-dumping investigations to prevent China dumping its products in Taiwan. Cho made the remarks in a discussion session with representatives from industries in Kaohsiung. In response to the US government’s recent announcement of “reciprocal” tariffs on its trading partners, President William Lai (賴清德) and Cho last week began a series of consultations with industry leaders nationwide to gather feedback and address concerns. Taiwanese and US officials held a videoconference on Friday evening to discuss the
RSS