Paraguayan President Mario Abdo Benitez yesterday denied that his country might switch recognition to Beijing after it holds elections in April, saying that severing diplomatic relations with Taiwan would be a “historic mistake.”
Abdo Benitez, who cannot run for re-election under the Paraguayan constitution, said he hopes his successor’s administration would not commit such an error.
Speaking at a news conference during a five-day visit to Taipei, Abdo Benitez said he believes that no matter who succeeds him, the election would not affect Paraguay’s more than 65-year friendship with Taiwan.
Photo: CNA
Paraguay is one of 14 countries that have formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan.
PRO-CHINA CANDIDATE
Former Paraguayan minister of public works and communications Efrain Alegre, the candidate of the Authentic Radical Liberal Party, has said that if he wins, Paraguay would switch recognition to Beijing, as it would boost economically important soy and beef exports.
Abdo Benitez said his country has never had diplomatic ties with the People’s Republic of China, adding that its Taiwan ties are not a major issue ahead of the election.
Statements candidates make on the campaign trail would not necessarily correspond with their policies after taking office, Abdo Benitez added.
“Nobody is going to dare to go ahead with a process of diplomatic rupture with the Republic of China, Taiwan,” he said, referring to Taiwan’s official name. “We are brotherly peoples, and we have a destiny together.”
Former Paraguayan minister of finance Santiago Pena, the candidate of Abdo’s Colorado Party, has said Paraguay’s relations with Taiwan would remain intact if he wins the election.
Paraguay’s Taiwan ties have been under pressure in the past few years, especially from the country’s beef producers and farmers, who see the relationship as an obstacle to gaining access to China, the world’s largest market for their products.
China targeting Taiwan’s allies has taken on broader geopolitical significance amid US concerns about Beijing expanding its influence in Latin America and the Caribbean, where many of Taipei’s diplomatic allies are located.
US President Donald Trump yesterday announced sweeping "reciprocal tariffs" on US trading partners, including a 32 percent tax on goods from Taiwan that is set to take effect on Wednesday. At a Rose Garden event, Trump declared a 10 percent baseline tax on imports from all countries, with the White House saying it would take effect on Saturday. Countries with larger trade surpluses with the US would face higher duties beginning on Wednesday, including Taiwan (32 percent), China (34 percent), Japan (24 percent), South Korea (25 percent), Vietnam (46 percent) and Thailand (36 percent). Canada and Mexico, the two largest US trading
AIR SUPPORT: The Ministry of National Defense thanked the US for the delivery, adding that it was an indicator of the White House’s commitment to the Taiwan Relations Act Deputy Minister of National Defense Po Horng-huei (柏鴻輝) and Representative to the US Alexander Yui on Friday attended a delivery ceremony for the first of Taiwan’s long-awaited 66 F-16C/D Block 70 jets at a Lockheed Martin Corp factory in Greenville, South Carolina. “We are so proud to be the global home of the F-16 and to support Taiwan’s air defense capabilities,” US Representative William Timmons wrote on X, alongside a photograph of Taiwanese and US officials at the event. The F-16C/D Block 70 jets Taiwan ordered have the same capabilities as aircraft that had been upgraded to F-16Vs. The batch of Lockheed Martin
GRIDLOCK: The National Fire Agency’s Special Search and Rescue team is on standby to travel to the countries to help out with the rescue effort A powerful earthquake rocked Myanmar and neighboring Thailand yesterday, killing at least three people in Bangkok and burying dozens when a high-rise building under construction collapsed. Footage shared on social media from Myanmar’s second-largest city showed widespread destruction, raising fears that many were trapped under the rubble or killed. The magnitude 7.7 earthquake, with an epicenter near Mandalay in Myanmar, struck at midday and was followed by a strong magnitude 6.4 aftershock. The extent of death, injury and destruction — especially in Myanmar, which is embroiled in a civil war and where information is tightly controlled at the best of times —
China's military today said it began joint army, navy and rocket force exercises around Taiwan to "serve as a stern warning and powerful deterrent against Taiwanese independence," calling President William Lai (賴清德) a "parasite." The exercises come after Lai called Beijing a "foreign hostile force" last month. More than 10 Chinese military ships approached close to Taiwan's 24 nautical mile (44.4km) contiguous zone this morning and Taiwan sent its own warships to respond, two senior Taiwanese officials said. Taiwan has not yet detected any live fire by the Chinese military so far, one of the officials said. The drills took place after US Secretary
RSS