Taipei [Taiwan], May 18 : Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) on Saturday rejected China's allegations regarding dollar diplomacy with Guatemala and called it a ploy by China to use the occasion of the oath-taking ceremony of President-elect Lai Ching-te and Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim on May 20 to try and disrupt Taipei's foreign relations, Taiwan News reported.
Taiwan's foreign ministry's statement came after the Chinese foreign ministry alleged that Taiwan had maintained political support from Guatemala by paying off its lawmakers, according to Taiwan News report.
The statement released by Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated, "China took advantage of the inauguration ceremony of its new president and vice president to once again resort to despicable tactics in an attempt to confuse the international community. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs severely condemned it and warned China that Taiwan, the Republic of China, is a sovereign and independent country. China has no right to comment on exchanges."
Taiwan's foreign ministry accused China of using money and corrupt practices to infiltrate other nations and termed the latest allegations made by Beijing a grave insult to the leaders of Guatemala, Taiwan News report.
In the statement, Taiwan's foreign ministry said, "As we all know, China not only uses financial bribes to infiltrate other countries but also creates debt traps to cause fatal harm to the development of other countries."
Taiwan expressed strong protest over China's accusations and urged the global community to condemn China's hypocrisy. In a statement, Taiwan's foreign ministry stated, "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs severely condemned it and warned China that Taiwan, the Republic of China, is a sovereign and independent country. China has no right to comment on exchanges."
On May 12, Guatemala announced that it would send Guatemala's Foreign Minister Carlos Ramiro Martinez to attend the inauguration of Taiwan President-elect Lai Ching-te. According to MOFA, mutual visits by Lai and by Guatemalan President Bernardo Arevalo would be arranged later.
Earlier in February, Guatemala's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) said that the country will continue to maintain ties with Taiwan. Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs welcomed the decision.
In a statement, Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated, "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) of the Republic of China (Taiwan) welcomes the statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Guatemala on February 7 reaffirming its resolute stance on maintaining diplomatic relations with Taiwan."
"Based on the shared values of freedom and democracy and the foundations of the long-term partnership between the two countries, MOFA looks forward to Taiwan and Guatemala continuing to deepen cooperation and exchanges at all levels to jointly benefit the peoples of both nations," it added.
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