Foreign minister vows to keep faith with Malawi

Minister of Foreign Affairs James Huang said Tuesday that Taiwan is continuing to communicate with Malawi and would keep faith with its African ally.

The foreign minister flew to Africa last week amid reports that Malawi is preparing to sever ties with Taiwan in favor of China. While en route however, Huang was informed via Malawi's embassy in Taipei that his visit would not be convenient.

Arriving back in Taiwan on Tuesday, Huang said that these were testing times for relations between the two countries. But he said Taiwan would keep lines of communication open.

"We will continue to show good faith in our dialogue with Malawi. And I myself am quite happy to go back to Malawi at the earliest time they feel convenient. We will communicate with Malawi frankly and openly. It's probably best for both sides to just let things settle first," said Huang.

Huang also said that Taiwan faces a tricky year ahead diplomatically. He said that Beijing will certainly use Taiwan's legislative and presidential elections this year to launch a renewed diplomatic offensive against Taiwan. He said however that the foreign ministry would rise to meet the challenges ahead.