Taiwan's top diplomat says Haiti, Vatican ties need extra attention

Taipei, March 3 (CNA) While Taiwan's diplomatic relations with all its 12 official allies are relatively stable, "extra attention" needs to be paid to Haiti and the Vatican, Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) has said.

During an interview with an online political talk show on Sunday, Lin said that Haiti has been rocked by gang violence and social unrest since former Haitian President Jovenel Moïse was assassinated in July 2021.

However, Lin said that Taiwan continued to stand with Haiti and was one of the last nations whose embassy remained open during the unrest.

Lin added that the new U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has placed a high importance on Latin America and the Caribbean since taking office.

"So I believe Taiwan and the U.S. can work together in this regard," Lin said.

Meanwhile, Lin said the Holy See has been pushing for closer exchanges with China under Pope Francis.

The Holy See is the only European diplomatic ally of the Republic of China (ROC), the official name of Taiwan. Relations were established in 1942 when the ROC government was based in Chongqing.

In 2018, Beijing and the Vatican struck a historic deal to work together on appointing Chinese bishops, which was extended for a third time in October 2024.

However, Beijing has repeatedly contravened the agreement by unilaterally appointing bishops.

In an interview with the monthly magazine America published on Feb. 28, Archbishop Paul Gallagher, the Vatican's secretary for relations with states, said the Holy See remains committed to dialogue with China on the appointment of bishops with China.

"We believe that it is a process of continuing this dialogue, working on these questions of the appointment of bishops, trying to make this agreement work better, and slowly, hopefully, by doing so, building up a sense of trust and understanding between the Holy See and the People's Republic of China (PRC)," he said.

In response to Gallagher's comments, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) told CNA Monday that it continues to closely monitor the ongoing dialogue between the PRC and the Holy See.

MOFA said it understands that the Vatican hopes to improve the plight of Chinese Catholics via dialogue with the PRC.

MOFA added that Taiwan would continue to work with the Holy See and the Catholic Church to enhance humanitarian cooperation and jointly safeguard the core value of religious freedom and in so doing, enhance bilateral ties.