Taiwan received an undiplomatic wake-up call on August 6, when the oil-rich central African nation of Chad broke relations with Taipei hours before Taiwan’s Premier Su Tseng-chang was scheduled to depart to attend the third inaugural ceremony for Chadian President Idriss Déby. The loss of oil-rich Chad – which foreign ministry sources said announced official links with the People’s Republic of China after scarcely veiled blackmail by Beijing to unleash Chadian rebels based in Sudan against Mr Déby if Chad did not break ties with Taipei – shrank the number of Taiwan’s official diplomatic allies to just 24.
While an unwelcome shock, the break may be the final spur needed for the recasting of Taiwan’s diplomatic strategy and practice.
