A total of 183 distinguished guests attended the official Double Ten National Day celebration yesterday, 92 of whom were from foreign delegations and 91 were foreign representatives in Taiwan, including their spouses, data from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as of Tuesday showed.
The delegates included 24 people from the Asia-Pacific region, 22 from Latin America and the Caribbean, 12 from North America and 12 from Europe, as well as 20 foreign journalists and two people from the Central American Bank for Economic Integration, the ministry said on Wednesday.
Six of the nation’s allies sent delegations to the event: 10 people led by Tuvaluan Prime Minister Feleti Teo and his wife; four led by Belizean Deputy Prime Minister Cordel Hyde; three by Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Deputy Prime Minister Montgomery Daniel; four by Saint Lucian Senate President Alvina Reynolds and House of Assembly Speaker Claudius Francis; four by Guatemalan first lady Lucrecia Peinado; and eight by Palauan Minister of State Gustav Aitaro.
Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei Times
Other Taiwan-friendly countries also sent delegates, including US Representative Debbie Lesko, Japanese Councilor Akiko Santo and We Are Peru Party Chairman Patricia Li Sotelo, the ministry said, thanking all guests for extending their friendship to Taiwan.
International media covering the event focused on President William Lai’s (賴清德) statement that “the People’s Republic of China has no right to represent Taiwan.”
The Washington Post added that Lai’s speech “included offers to work together with China,” and cited National Taiwan University political science professor Lev Nachman as saying it was not as “snarky” as it used to be.
Reuters reported that Lai’s address was delivered in “both a firm and a conciliatory tone,” while the Financial Times titled its coverage “Taiwan’s president calls on China to ‘live up to’ duty to protect peace.”
The BBC, Japan Times and al-Jazeera highlighted his pledge to “resist annexation” in their headlines.
“Lai has been more outspoken than his predecessor, [former president] Tsai Ing-wen [蔡英文], in defending Taiwan’s sovereignty,” the Japan Times reported.
Lai’s vow to uphold Taiwan’s sovereignty marked “his most high-profile public address since taking office earlier this year,” the BBC reported.
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