Taipei - Taiwan on Thursday confirmed that St Lucia has
agreed to recognize Taipei, but the Caribbean island state is not
ready to cut diplomatic ties with China.
'St Lucia's foreign minister told parliament on Wednesday that St
Lucia was going to recognize Taiwan, so our next step is to complete
the procedure of resuming ties as soon as possible,' Foreign Minister
Huang Chih-fang told reporters.
'Although St Lucia launches ties with us, it does not want to cut
ties with China. So we should not lower our vigilance because there
will be sharp reaction or protest from China,' he said.
'We hope to complete the procedure of resuming ties with St Lucia
as soon as possible,' Huang said, adding that the communique on
resuming ties could be signed within a month.
On Wednesday night, Premier Su Tseng-chang, while campaigning for
his bid to join the 2008 presidential race, told a mass rally that St
Lucia had agreed to resume diplomatic ties with Taiwan.
'I have good news to tell you: that is St Lucia will become our
25th diplomatic ally tonight,' he said the rally in Chunli City.
It is not clear how St Lucia will maintain diplomatic ties with
both Taipei and Beijing.
Taiwan accepts dual recognition, but China cuts ties with foreign
countries as soon as they have launch formal ties with Taipei.
St Lucia, a Caribbean island state with a population of 168,000,
opened diplomatic ties with Taiwan in 1984 but cut them in order to
recognize China in 1997.
Taiwan has been seeking to restore diplomatic ties with St Lucia
since the return to power of the Caribbean nation's opposition leader
John Compton in December 2006.
Compton, 82, is leader of the United Workers' Party and is the so-
called father of St Lucia's independence from Britain in 1979.
He led St Lucia for 29 years, between 1964 and 1979 and again from
1982 to 1996.
Taiwan and China's diplomatic manoeuvres over St Lucia intensified
in recent months, causing China to pledge more aid, including
offering to help build an industrial zone and a sports stadium, in a
bid to match Taiwan's offer of aid.
If St Lucia resumes ties with Taiwan, it will be the 25th country
to recognize Taiwan, formally known as the Republic of China.
Some 170 countries recognize China, or the People's Republic of
China, and see Taiwan as China's breakaway province.
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur 
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