Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) yesterday said his ministry would find out more from Paraguayan presidential candidate Efrain Alegre about his remarks that ties with Taiwan have damaged the nation’s agricultural sector by shutting out the Chinese market.
Speaking with reporters on the sidelines of a legislative session, Wu said he was “concerned” by Alegre’s assertion in an interview with Reuters on Wednesday that maintaining relations with Taipei had made it hard for Paraguay to sell beef and soy to China.
Wu later told lawmakers that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was communicating with people who are familiar with the issue to understand the “official stance” of Alegre, one of the leading contenders to win Paraguay’s presidential election on Sunday next week.
Photo: CNA
Wu said his ministry would continue to do its best to maintain ties with Paraguay, the only country in South America to have diplomatic relations with Taiwan.
Alegre, who has vowed to cut ties with Taipei and establish diplomatic relations with Beijing, on Wednesday said that the “current relationship is insufficient,” vowing to “solve this based on national interests” if elected.
The latest polls show Alegre neck-and-neck with his main rival, the ruling conservative Colorado Party’s candidate, Santiago Pena, who has pledged to maintain ties with Taiwan.
Meanwhile, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Roy Lee (李淳) yesterday said that no matter which party wins Paraguay’s presidential election, the ministry is planning to send representatives to attend the new leader’s inauguration in August.
Lee did not say if President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) or Vice President William Lai (賴清德) would lead the delegation.
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