Bolivia Approves Ties With Peking, Ousts Taiwanese
This country established full diplomatic relations with China on Wednesday and ordered the ambassador of Taiwan, Edward Wu, dean of the diplomatic corps, to leave within 72 hours.
“The government of the Republic of Bolivia recognizes that the government of the People’s Republic of China is the only legal government of China and that Taiwan is an inalienable part of the territory of the People’s Republic of China,” a communique said.
The abrupt shift in relations was announced to Wu by Foreign Minister Edgar Camacho, a leftist member of the Cabinet of President Hernan Siles Zuazo, who is in the last month of his term. Disputed presidential elections, in which Siles would not be eligible to run, are scheduled Sunday.
The establishment of diplomatic relations with mainland China was seen as an electoral gesture to satisfy the government’s leftist supporters.
Wu had been the ambassador of the Chinese Nationalist regime on Taiwan for nine years, during which he developed an active economic aid and cultural exchange program.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
