São Tomé and Príncipe–Taiwan relations are relations between São Tomé and Príncipe and

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

(officially the Republic of China or ROC). Official bilateral relations began in 1997 and ended in 2016.

History

São Tomé and Príncipe declared independence from Portugal on 12 July 1975 and recognized the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

(PRC) on the same day. Bilateral relations between São Tomé and Príncipe and the Republic of China were first established on 6 May 1997. In accordance with the

One-China policy The term One China may refer to one of the following: * The One China principle is the position held by the People's Republic of China (PRC) that there is only one sovereign state under the name China, with the PRC serving as the sole legit ...

, the PRC suspended relations with São Tomé and Príncipe on 11 July 1997. In February 1998, ROC Foreign Minister

Jason Hu Jason Hu (; born 15 May 1948) is a Taiwanese politician. He was the mayor of Taichung as provincial city in 2001-2010 and as special municipality in 2010–2014. He is a member of the Kuomintang (KMT), and has been the Vice Chairman of the p ...

made an official visit to São Tomé and Príncipe. São Tomé and Príncipe President

Miguel Trovoada Miguel dos Anjos da Cunha Lisboa Trovoada (born December 27, 1936) was the prime minister from 1975 to 1979 and second president of São Tomé and Príncipe 1991 to 2001. On 16 July 2014, he was appointed the Special Representative of the Unite ...

visited Taiwan in June of that year. São Tomé granted Taiwan landing visa privileges in 2012. In 2013, the PRC established a trade office in São Tomé, and the next year President

Manuel Pinto da Costa Manuel Pinto da Costa (born 5 August 1937) is a Santomean economist and politician who served as the first president of São Tomé and Príncipe from 1975 to 1991. He again served as president from 2011 to 2016. Life and career Educated in Eas ...

visited China in a private capacity. Bilateral relations between São Tomé and Príncipe and the Republic of China were terminated on 21 December 2016 by Taiwan due to exorbitant amounts of financial aid being requested.

Aid

ROC aid to São Tomé and Príncipe focused on agriculture, energy, and technology. Another area of cooperation was public health. Many Taiwanese medical professionals have lent their expertise in an effort to stop the spread of malaria in São Tomé.

Taipei Medical University Taipei Medical University (TMU; ) in Taiwan is located in Taipei's Xinyi District. Founded as Taipei Medical College in 1960, it was renamed as Taipei Medical University in 2000. TMU has expanded into a world class university with ten colleges, ...

began offering medical aid to São Tomé in 2009, and ended the program upon the cessation of official ties in 2016. Prior to the end of bilateral relations São Tomé was a member of the Taiwan Scholarship program.

References

Sao Tome and Principe {{Taiwan-poli-stub

History

Aid

See also

References