TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) – Taiwan has established a trade office in the South American country of Guyana, a diplomatic victory for the island that has continued to lose allies in China’s aggressive poaching campaign in recent years.
China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded quickly, demanding that stakeholders “avoid establishing any official institutions among themselves and take practical measures to correct errors and eliminate negative impacts”.
“We warn the DPP official that any attempt to seek support from foreign forces to engage in separatist activities around the world will never be successful,” ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told reporters, referring to the initials of the Progressive Democratic Party, which rejects Beijing’s demands for political unification.
Guyana’s facilities will focus on cooperation in areas such as agriculture, education and trade, the Taiwan Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in an announcement on Thursday. It does not represent the establishment of formal diplomatic relations.
Guyana said on Thursday that the installation would not lead to full diplomatic relations with Taiwan.
“We highly value our relations with China and will maintain this policy 100%,” said President Irfaan Ali.
Taiwan has been the target of a massive pressure campaign from China that claims the island as part of its territory – to be conquered by military force if necessary – and says it has no right to official exchanges with any foreign governments or multinational organizations like the United Nations. Nations.
Taiwan has only 15 formal diplomatic allies remaining, after two countries chose to move diplomatic relations to China in 2019 from Taiwan.
Taiwan also has a network of commercial offices around the world that act as de facto embassies, including in the United States, Japan and most other major nations.
Also last year, Taiwan exchanged representative offices with the separatist territory of Somalia from Somaliland to focus on trade and security in the Horn of Africa. China responded by accusing Taiwan of “undermining Somalia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity”.
China has often sought to destroy such agreements in the past and has used its enormous economic resources to win over Taiwan’s remaining allies.
China has refused all direct contacts with the Taiwanese government since the election of DPP president Tsai Ing-wen, inclined to independence, in 2016. Tsai was re-elected last year for a second four-year term.
Despite this, Taiwan enjoys strengthening US support as an unofficial ally. Bipartisan support for the island has grown in recent years under the former Trump administration, including a visit by the highest-level U.S. government delegation since the U.S. shifted relations from Taipei to Beijing in 1979.
The US applauded Thursday’s move, with the embassy in Guyana and the US de facto mission in Taiwan issuing statements of support.
“Deepening ties between Guyana and Taiwan will promote their common goals of prosperity and security,” said the statement from the United States Embassy in Guyana.
“The United States remains committed to supporting Taiwan as it expands its international partnerships and works to address global challenges, including COVID-19,” said the American Institute in Taiwan in its statement.