FM James Huang denied visit to Malawi

He left Taipei for Lilongwe on Thursday to make sure diplomatic relations between Taiwan and Malawi won’t be cut off.

On his way to Lilongwe, the foreign minister received calls from the Malawi government regretting that the African country wasn’t ready to welcome him.

Joyce Banda, Malawi foreign minister, is away from Lilongwe, while President Bingu wa Muthrika is still on New Year’s leave, Huang was told.

But Banda reassured Huang that Malawi-Taiwan relations remain unchanged, the Foreign Ministry spokesperson said yesterday.

Phoebe Yeh told the press Banda asked for Taipei’s understanding and promised to extend a formal invitation to Huang to visit the Malawi capital after the New Year holiday is over, she added.

She said Malawi’s last-minute cancellation of Huang’s visit could signal an end of diplomatic ties between the two countries.

Calling the situation “unusual,” Yeh admitted Taipei-Lilongwe relations are at a “sensitive, delicate stage.”

Although Mutharika and Banda have repeatedly affirmed Malawi’s allegiance to Taiwan, two Malawi Cabinet ministers were sent to Beijing to sign a multi-billion project China would finance.

If signed, the project would force Malawi to switch diplomatic recognition to Beijing from Taipei. Taiwan will then have only 23 countries, all of them small, with which it maintains official relations at the ambassadorial level.

As a result of the apparent snub from Lilongwe, Huang proceeded directly to Swaziland, which was supposed to be the second leg of his African tour.

While in Swaziland, Huang is scheduled to finalize a bilateral cooperation protocol. He is expected to return to Taipei at the weekend, Yeh said.

A Reuters dispatch from Lilongwe reaching Taipei last night said Malawi will announce the establishment of diplomatic ties with China this month.

But Malawi would retain economic links with Taiwan, the Reuters quoted a foreign ministry official as saying.

“A delegation ... was in mainland China last week to discuss bilateral relations with Malawi and the announcement will be made anytime this month,” the Lilongwe official told the Reuters.

It is highly unlikely that Taipei would keep economic relations with Lilongwe after Malawi made a diplomatic switch.

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