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HOME	JANUARY 29th, 2005

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Prime Minister Dr. Keith Mitchell has lashed out at statements made by Taiwan's Foreign Minister Michel Lu who was quoted as saying that the New National Party (NNP) administration in St. George's had demanded US$245 million from his country in order for it to continue diplomatic relations with Grenada.

The war of words between St. George's and Taipei heated up last week following an announcement in Beijing that Grenada had switched from Taiwan to Mainland China.

Officials of the Taiwanese embassy in Grenada have indicated to this newspaper that they are still to be officially notified by Grenada about the move. The relationship between the two countries has been strained in recent times due to an official visit to Beijing last month by Dr. Mitchell at the head of a ten-member delegation in search of aid to rebuild his hurricane-ravaged island.

Foreign Minister Lu is quoted in the media in Taiwan as saying that the Republic of China (ROC) plans to make the re-establishment of diplomatic relations between Grenada and China very difficult. He called on the NNP administration in St. George's to repay outstanding loans of US$28 million owed to his country.

In commenting on the issue, Prime Minister Mitchell described as a "blatant lie" the charge by the ROC Foreign Minister that Grenada had made demands for $245US million in order to continue with the relationship.

Speaking to reporters at a news briefing held at the St. George's University last Friday, Dr. Mitchell insisted that the government never made such a request of Taiwan. "Anyone who puts forward that Grenada asked Taiwan for US$245 million is telling a blatant lie. It is unfortunate anyone with any sense of responsibility could make such a statement (that) is certainly far from the truth", he said.

According to Prime Minister Mitchell, Grenada has been very responsible in its dealings with Taiwan and that the reason for breaking off ties is because the government in Taipei had not shown it was interested in the relationship.

The Grenadian leader indicated that the decision to shift diplomatic ties to Beijing will benefit Grenada in the medium and long term since China is going to be a major factor in what takes place in the global environment.

Asked when he will officially inform the local ROC Embassy about to leave Grenada, Dr. Mitchell was quick to point out that this is a matter for Minister Nimrod in his capacity as Foreign Minister and not himself. When pressed to comment about the benefits that will be derived from the relationship, the Prime Minister appealed to the media to wait on an official statement.

However, he said that the Chinese have agreed to assist in the re-building of some houses, construction of a state-of-the-art sporting facility, as well a new hospital, and diversification of the agriculture sector. These are projects, he said that Taiwan had refused to get involved in.

"When the entire relationship and what is in store for Grenada comes out, I think we all will be very happy in the long run even those who criticise the move", Dr. Mitchell added.

The Prime Minister had once chided then Opposition Leader Michael Baptiste for inviting a female Chinese ambassador to Grenada when relations were very warm with Taipei. He accused Baptiste of trying to sell Grenada out to Mainland China for "thirty pieces of silver".