Paraguay president vows to defend Taiwan ties ‘with all its strength'
Advertisement
Speaking at a Taiwan–Paraguay business forum in Asunción, Peña said his country's partnership with the self-ruled island reflects Paraguay's sovereign foreign policy and its commitment to democratic principles, not just economic interests.
The remarks came months
after Paraguay expelled a senior mainland Chinese diplomat in December for allegedly interfering in domestic politics over the Taiwan issue.
Paraguayan authorities said at the time that Xu Wei, a Beijing‑based envoy visiting Asunción for a UN event, skipped official meetings to privately urge opposition lawmakers to switch recognition from Taipei to Beijing. They declared Xu persona non grata, accusing him of attempting to undermine the country's long-standing diplomatic stance.
Xu defended his move by claiming that it would bring 'thousands of advantages', including expanded trade and investment.
Advertisement
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South China Morning Post
an hour ago
- South China Morning Post
Trump open to meeting Putin and Zelensky after discussing it in call with Ukrainian leader
US President Donald Trump is open to meeting with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky, the White House said on Wednesday. The possibility was discussed in a call between Trump and Zelensky that, according to a senior Ukrainian source, also included Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte and the leaders of Britain, Germany and Finland, after Washington's envoy Steve Witkoff visited Moscow for talks earlier in the day. 'The Russians expressed their desire to meet with President Trump, and the president is open to meeting with both President Putin and President Zelensky,' White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said. The New York Times reported that Trump intended to meet first with Putin, and then to follow that up with a three-way meeting involving the Russian and Ukrainian leaders. Nato and Ukrainian officials did not confirm the report when contacted by Agence France-Presse. Earlier on Wednesday, Trump hailed the meeting between his envoy and Putin as 'highly productive', but US officials said sanctions would still be imposed on Moscow's trading partners.
South China Morning Post
2 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Brazil's Lula rejects ‘humiliation' of calling Trump over tariff row
As US tariffs on Brazilian goods jumped to 50 per cent on Wednesday, Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said in an interview that he saw no room for direct talks with US President Donald Trump which he believes would turn into a 'humiliation' for him. Brazil is not about to announce reciprocal tariffs, he said. Nor will his government give up on cabinet-level talks. But Lula himself is in no rush to ring the White House. 'The day my intuition says Trump is ready to talk, I won't hesitate to call him,' Lula said in an interview from his presidential residence in Brasilia. 'But today my intuition says he doesn't want to talk. And I'm not going to humiliate myself.' Despite Brazil's exports facing one of the highest tariffs imposed by Trump, the new US trade barriers look unlikely to derail Latin America's largest economy, giving Lula more room to stand his ground against Trump than most Western leaders. Lula described US-Brazil relations at a 200-year nadir after Trump tied the new tariff to his demand for an end to the prosecution of right-wing former president Jair Bolsonaro, who is standing trial for plotting to overturn the 2022 election. 01:15 Canada, Brazil hardest hit as Trump unleashes new global tariff blitz Canada, Brazil hardest hit as Trump unleashes new global tariff blitz The president said Brazil's Supreme Court, which is hearing the case against Bolsonaro, 'does not care what Trump says and it should not', adding that Bolsonaro should face another trial for provoking Trump's intervention, calling the right-wing former president a 'traitor to the homeland'.
HKFP
5 hours ago
- HKFP
Father of activist wanted under nat. sec law pleads not guilty to attempting to handle daughter's insurance funds
The father of overseas activist Anna Kwok, who is wanted under the national security law, has pleaded not guilty to attempting to handle her funds. Kwok Yin-sang, a merchant, appeared at the West Kowloon Magistrates' Court on Wednesday afternoon. He faces a charge under Article 23, the city's homegrown security law, for allegedly attempting to deal with funds linked to an 'absconder.' His daughter, Anna Kwok, who lives in the US, is wanted by national security police for suspected foreign collusion. According to the charge sheet, Kwok Yin-sang allegedly attempted to obtain funds from an AIA International life and personal accident insurance policy that belonged to Anna Kwok between January 4 and February 27. Wearing a green T-shirt and a black mask, Kwok Yin-sang said 'not guilty' when asked by the court how he would plead. Judge Victor So set the trial to be conducted on October 8 and 9 after prosecutor Vincent Lee said he estimated it would take at least two days. Lee said he expected to summon seven prosecution witnesses. Article 23 Kwok Yin-sang is the first relative of a wanted activist to be charged with a national security offence. His daughter, Anna Kwok, is one of 34 overseas activists wanted by police under the Beijing-imposed national security law. Authorities are offering up to HK$1 million for information that could lead to their arrest. Invoking Article 23, the Hong Kong government barred anyone from dealing with her assets in the city after Secretary for Security Chris Tang declared her an 'absconder,' along with six other exiled activists, in December. Her father was denied bail after his arrest in late April and spent two and a half weeks in remand before being granted bail on several conditions, including reporting to the police every day and not contacting his daughter. His release marked the first successful bail application in a case charged under Article 23, known officially as the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance. Separate to the 2020 Beijing-enacted security law, the homegrown Safeguarding National Security Ordinance targets treason, insurrection, sabotage, external interference, sedition, theft of state secrets and espionage. It allows for pre-charge detention of up to 16 days, and suspects' access to lawyers may be restricted, with penalties involving up to life in prison. The law has been criticised by rights NGOs, Western states and the UN as vague, broad and 'regressive.' Authorities, however, cited perceived foreign interference and a constitutional duty to 'close loopholes' after the 2019 protests and unrest.
