Earth Science News  
AFRICA NEWS
China, Burkina Faso establish ties following Taiwan snub
by Staff Writers
Beijing (AFP) May 26, 2018

Burkina Faso minister visits China after breaking with Taiwan
Ouagadougou (AFP) May 26, 2018 - Burkina Faso's foreign minister will begin a visit to China on Saturday, just days after cutting diplomatic ties with Taiwan in the first such visit in 25 years, diplomatic sources told AFP.

"Minister (Alpha) Barry flew to China after taking part in Thursday's cabinet meeting and is expected to arrive in Beijing on Saturday, after stopping in Abidjan and Paris," a diplomatic source told AFP on Friday.

It is the first such visit since the west African country suspended co-operation with Beijing in 1993 before switching recognition to Taiwan a year later.

But on Thursday, the Sahel state announced its decision to sever ties with Taiwan following a string of similar moves by African states since 2000. Swaziland remains the only African country to have relations with Taiwan.

In a statement, Barry said "changes in the world, the current socio-economic challenges facing our country and our region call on us to reconsider our position".

China considers Taiwan to be a renegade province.

The two have for years engaged in a diplomatic tug-of-war in developing countries, with economic support and other aid often used as bargaining chips for recognition.

China has notched up a string of successes south of the Sahara, where it has gained a high profile in infrastructure projects, especially in transport.

The move to dump the island, which is left with only 18 diplomatic allies around the world, sparked the resignation of Taiwan's foreign minister, Joseph Wu.

A landlocked country of 18 million people on the southern rim of the Sahara, Burkina Faso is one of the poorest nations of the world.

It ranked 185th out of 188 states in the UN's Human Development Index for 2016.

China and Burkina Faso signed an agreement to establish diplomatic relations on Saturday, days after the west African nation cut ties with Taiwan in yet another victory for Beijing in its campaign to isolate the island.

A communique on establishing relations was signed in Beijing by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his counterpart Alpha Barry.

Burkina Faso broke off ties with Taiwan on Thursday, becoming the second country to do so within a month and leaving the democratically ruled island with only 18 diplomatic allies around the world.

Wang said in a speech after the signing that Burkina Faso acknowledged in the communique that "there is only one China in the world."

"The Burkina Faso government is following the trend of the times and made the right political decision," he said.

The move had been widely expected after Burkina Faso defected from Taiwan, which has steadily lost ground in a decades-long diplomatic tug-of-war with China in developing countries.

Taiwan can now claim only one ally in Africa, Swaziland.

"Now Africa has only one country with which we have not yet established (relations)," Wang said.

"We hope this country can join the big China-Africa family of friendship as soon as possible."

China and Taiwan split in 1949 after a civil war won by the Chinese Communists. The two sides often use economic support and other aid as bargaining chips for diplomatic recognition.

China still considers Taiwan to be a renegade province to be reunified with the mainland, by force if necessary.

Relations between Taiwan and China have worsened since President Tsai Ing-wen took over in Taipei in 2016.

Beijing has raised the pressure on Tsai, whose government refuses to acknowledge that Taiwan -- whose democratic freedoms stand in stark contrast to Communist-ruled China -- is part of a "one China".

Burkina Faso was the fourth country to cut ties with Taipei since Tsai took office two years ago.

Calling China "the world's most important economy," Barry said he expected Burkina Faso to benefit from the relationship.

Taiwan expressed its "strong disappointment, regret and anger" at the move.

In a statement, the foreign ministry accused Burkina Faso of "being lured by China's dollar diplomatic offensive, ignoring the significant contributions Taiwan had made for the past 24 years towards Burkina Faso's security, social stability, economic development and people's livelihood".

Tsai has also lashed out at China's "crude behaviours" after Burkina Faso broke ties.

"China's crude behaviours to undermine our sovereignty have already challenged the bottom line of Taiwan's society. We will not tolerate it anymore," she said Thursday.

The Dominican Republic switched recognition to Beijing earlier in May, terminating a 77-year diplomatic relationship to recognise China.

The small African nation of Sao Tome switched recognition to Beijing in late 2016, followed by Panama in June last year.


Related Links
Africa News - Resources, Health, Food


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


AFRICA NEWS
France to pump 65 million euros into African startups
Paris (AFP) May 24, 2018
France will plough 65 million euros ($76 million) into startups in Africa, President Emmanuel Macron announced Thursday at a technology conference in Paris. Macron made the announcement at the third edition of the VivaTech trade fair, which brings together innovators, investors and entrepreneurs. This year VivaTech, which features speeches by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Uber boss Dara Khosrowshahi, has put a special focus on innovation in Africa's tiny but fast-growing startup scene. "A ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.



Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

AFRICA NEWS
A hidden world of communication, chemical warfare, beneath the soil

Research suggests sweet potatoes didn't originate in the Americas as previously thought

Scientists' new way to identify microscopic worm attacking coffee crops

Throwing out food

AFRICA NEWS
Excess nutrients, coupled with climate change, damage the most highly resilient corals

Loss of marine habitats is threatening the global fishing industry

The ultrafast dance of liquid water

Twin sportscar-sized satellites to chase water changes on Earth

AFRICA NEWS
Dusty rainfall records reveal new understanding of Earth's long-term climate

Climate change in Quebec equals a much greater diversity of species?

Schwarzenegger urges Trump to 'join us' on climate action

GRACE-FO Will Help Monitor Droughts

AFRICA NEWS
Black Bear Energy And Usaa Real Estate Announce 2.4 Megawatt New Jersey Solar Project

Germany's E.ON explores solar development with Google

LBA Realty's Battery Storage and LED Projects expected to deliver $1.9 million in Energy Savings

ABC Solar Seeking Legal Funds from CrowdJustice.com for Monopoly Abuse Fight

AFRICA NEWS
Advanced biofuels can be produced extremely efficiently, confirms industrial demonstration

Technique doubles conversion of CO2 to plastic component

New catalyst upgrades greenhouse gas into renewable hydrocarbons

Scientists have deciphered the chemical reaction mechanism critical for cleaner combustion

AFRICA NEWS
Arkema's Texas plant unprepared for Harvey floods, inquiry finds

Navy captain accused in deadly Tunisia migrant boat sinking

An electronic rescue dog

Brazil rescues African, Guyanese migrants drifting at sea

AFRICA NEWS
Upstream efforts put North Sea find closer to production

Economic, trade concerns drag oil prices lower

Europe tries to correct Gazprom's behavior

No easy fix to higher gas prices in United States

AFRICA NEWS
China denies setting target to cut US trade surplus

Macron presses tech giants on taxes, working conditions

Rare bottles of whisky fetch record $1m each at Hong Kong auction

Macron in Russia for high-stakes talks with Putin









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.