Taiwan has not yet received an invite to attend the inauguration of Philippine President-elect Ferdinand Marcos Jr. That was the word from the foreign ministry on Wednesday.
Marcos Jr.’s inauguration is scheduled to take place on Wednesday. The foreign ministry says, after checking with Taiwan’s representative office in the Philippines, the government has not received an invitation to attend the ceremony.
The foreign ministry says that in the spirit of democracy and goodwill, the government has made other arrangements to forward President Tsai Ing-wen’s congratulations to Marcos Jr.
The foreign ministry points out that the Philippines is one of Taiwan’s most important partners. It says the two countries are geographical neighbors and are tied closely by tourism, trade, and labor.
The foreign ministry has not offered an explanation as to why Taiwan was not invited to attend Marcos Jr.’s inauguration. However, since China has announced that it will send Vice President Wang Qishan to attend the ceremony, some speculate that Chinese political pressure is at play.