by Rod Hughes
Despite Costa Rica’s diplomatic recognition of mainland China June 1 and the subsequent cancelation of Taiwanese aid projects in this country, the firm building the Naranjo-San Carlos highway says the construction will continue, according to the daily Al Dia. The project is important to the area for transport of agricultural produce and tourism development.
Taiwan responded on June 7 by breaking its own diplomatic ties with this country, promising to cancel a reported $70 million in soft loans and donations to Costa Rica.
But Chiang Chih-Yang, chief of the construction, said the highway, nearly 30% finished, would continue. He added that the road must be finished by April, 2010 at a total cost of $61 million, the paper reported.
Al Dia’s sources on the island nation say that Peking promised to donate to Costa Rica $130 million plus to purchase $300 million in Costa Rican bonds. Neither Peking or the Arias Administration has confirmed these figures.
Mainland China considers Taiwan a rebellious province, so Taiwan and China have been engaged in a diplomatic struggle for decades. Costa Rica’s defection leaves 24 countries that still recognise Taiwan as an independent state, half of them in Latin America and the Caribbean.