Beijing is in a position to deepen its full cooperative partnership with Caribbean nations, Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) said in Beijing with Grenadan Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell, whose country was Taiwan’s best diplomatic friend.
China is willing to help regional nations to help its economic and social development, said Xin Xinhua agency.
Grenada has benefited greatly from ties with China and is concerned about cooperation with China, Mitchell told Reunion.
Photo: Reuters
“Both sides should … draw a new blueprint for the long-term and high-level development of bilateral relations,” Xi said, adding that two-way ties had developed successfully over the past two decades.
Mitchell said Grenada firmly adheres to the “China principle” and out of respect for its sovereignty and territorial integrity, Xinhua added.
Mitchell, the first foreign leader Xi has met this year in Beijing, was on an official week-long visit to China from Saturday.
The Caribbean and Latin America have the largest concentration of diplomatic allies of Taiwan, with seven of the remaining 12 UN member states who are allies in the region.
Taiwan broke off ties with Grenada 20 years ago after the Caribbean nation switched dilomatic ties to China.
In the Caribbean, Haiti, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines are still diplomatic allies of Taiwan.
China and Taiwan have negotiated accusations of “diplomacy in dollars” for years, since they compete for diplomatic recognition.
Taiwanese security officials have said that they believed China is likely to continue to whittle away at the number of its diplomatic allies.