Taipei - The new Nicaraguan government is seeking a 495-
million US dollar loan from Taiwan to develop Nicaragua's
agriculture, a newspaper reported on Saturday.
The China Times said the loan was among items in the cooperation
agreement signed between Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega and
Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian, when Chen attended Ortega's
inauguration on January 10.
The agricultural loan came to light as the Nicaraguan parliament
has set up special committees to review the three cooperation pacts
signed by Ortega with Taiwanese, Venezuelan and Iranian president
when they attended Ortega's inauguration.
Nicaragua might also have sought loans for developing Nicaragua's
energy, education and construction sectors as well, the paper said.
Details of the cooperation agreement will be finalized when
Nicaraguan Foreign Minister Samuel Santos visits Taiwan next month,
the paper said.
The paper said the new Nicaraguan government was squeezing money
out of Taiwan as one of the 24 countries which still recognize it.
The paper quoted an unnamed Sandinista official as saying that
Nicaragua plays a vital role in preventing Central Americans nations
from dropping Taiwan to recognize China. Therefore, Taiwan has no
bargaining chips when Nicaragua asks for aid.
The official said that although Ortega has pledged to maintain
diplomatic ties with Taiwan, he was not happy with Taiwan's anti-
Ortega stance when he was running for president in 2006.
Taiwan's ambassador Hung Ming-ta threatened that if Ortega won the
election, Taiwan would shut its embassy and would not even leave a
trade mission in Nicaragua, the Sandinista official said.
Taiwanese businessmen in the Taiwan Industrial Zone also
threatened to return to Taiwan, and urged their Nicaraguan workers
and the workers' family members not to back Ortega, he said.
Since Ortega won the presidential election last November, Taiwan
has expressed concern about its ties with Nicaragua.
In 1985, Ortega's leftist Sandinista government cut ties with
Taiwan to recognize China. Nicaragua resumed ties with Taipei in 1990
when Violeta Barrios de Chamorro, a political moderate, defeated the
former revolutionary leader at the polls and became president.
During his campaign to return to power, Ortega vowed to resume
diplomatic ties with China and only maintain trade ties with Taiwan.
But after he won the election, he said he would make no drastic
changes in his economic and foreign politics, including in ties with
Taiwan.
But after he was sworn in, Ortega assured President Chen that
Nicaragua would maintain diplomatic ties with Taiwan while developing
trade ties with China.
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur 
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