Taiwan Responds to Belize Opposition Leader’s Comments Favoring China

Is Taiwan’s Government concerned about the Leader of the Opposition’s recent visit to the Chinese Embassy in Jamaica? In recent weeks, Barrow has made it clear that his support for the island nation has dwindled. He has accused the Taiwanese of interfering in local politics and suggested Belize switches its support to China. Yesterday, Taiwan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-Lung was asked to weigh in on Barrow’s statements and whether Taiwan is concerned.

Lin Chia-Lung, Taiwan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs: “But this is democracy, so with democracy comes different opinions. That’s a natural phenomenon. But we are confident on the bipartisan support from your political elites and most importantly, the support from the grassroots people. So generally speaking, the position of people are quite satisfied with the partnership between our two countries. So regardless of the election competition or outcomes, we are confident, because we have experienced the different party leadership during the past 35 years. So we congratulate the Belizean people on your achievement in terms of democracy and rule of law and respect for human rights.”

Belize’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Francis Fonseca has previously condemned Barrow’s statements.