Taiwan Pres. to visit in Bze in Sept.

The specifics have yet to been worked out, but News 5 has confirmed that Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian will pay an official visit to Belize sometime in September. The Taipei Times, in its online edition on Monday reports that President Shui-bian will visit two diplomatic allies in Central America, Panama and Belize, as well as make a stop over in the United States. According to the Taipei Times, the main purpose of the Taiwanese leader?s visit to Panama will be to attend the inauguration ceremony for that country?s president-elect Martin Torrijos, in September. Taiwanese Ambassador in Belize Charles Tsai confirmed that Shui-bian will call on Belmopan, but says no date has been set for the Belize leg of the visit. President Shui-bian told a group of visiting Panamanian reporters and academics last week that his upcoming trip will be arranged as simply as possible, meaning that his stopovers do not have any particular purpose–such as trying to achieve a particular diplomatic breakthrough. The trip will be Shui-bian?s second visit to Belize.