Taiwan 'forced' to offer $10m

2004-10-12 13:17

Taipei - Taiwan was forced to provide a multi-million dollar aid package to Chad to stop the central African ally from switching recognition to rival China, it was reported here on Tuesday.

The Taipei-based China Times Express cited unidentified sources as saying that Taiwan's foreign ministry officials had been divided over whether to grant Chad $10.36m in aid after it threatened to severe ties with the island.

But the ministry eventually agreed on the financial package after Chad called off a co-operation project with Taiwan's state-run Chinese Petroleum Corporation to operate oil fields there, the paper said.

It added that Chad, which re-established formal relations with Taiwan in 1997, has been in frequent contacts with China in the past year. It previously switched recognition to Beijing from Taipei in 1972.

Diplomatic tug-of-war

The two rivals across the Taiwan Strait have long engaged in a diplomatic tug-of-war trying to woo allies away from each other with hefty financial aids and business incentives.

"China has constantly suppressed Taiwan in the international arena and we have taken necessary precautions to prevent it from taking away our diplomatic allies," foreign ministry spokesperson Michel Lu told AFP.

But he denied reports on Chad's latest threat, saying bilateral co-operation continued to proceed.

Only 26 countries recognise Taipei instead of Beijing, which views the island as part of its territory awaiting reunification, by force if necessary.

The two sides split in 1949 after a civil war.

- AFP