Foreign Minister David Lin has thanked sixteen allied nations for supporting the Republic of China at the United Nations. The Republic of China (ROC) is the official name of Taiwan’s government.
Lin was speaking in an interview on Sunday, the last day of the current round of UN General Debates. He said that the ROC is looking for greater participation in the United Nations and its related organizations and events.
The ROC is not a member of the United Nations, due to opposition from China, which sees Taiwan as part of its territory. That’s despite the fact that the two sides have been ruled separately for nearly 70 years.
Of the ROC’s 22 allies, 16 voiced support for the country during the general debates. Six allies, including the Vatican, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, El Salvador and the Dominican Republic did not mention Taiwan.
Foreign Minister David Lin said that he did not think that Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to the UN had an impact on countries speaking out on Taiwan’s behalf. He said that a similar number of allies had voiced their support in previous years. Lin said the ROC understood that some of the countries had other considerations.