Taiwan Sends Alternative Military Servicemen to Somaliland

[ZodiaK]

Taiwan Sends Alternative Military Servicemen to Somaliland - East African Business Week

Taiwan will be sending 65 men to serve their alternative military service to 14 countries, for the first time including Somaliland, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said Tuesday.

www.busiweek.com

Taiwan will be sending 65 men to serve their alternative military service to 14 countries, for the first time including Somaliland, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said Tuesday.

The number of individuals serving had recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic and reached earlier levels, CNA reported. Of the destinations on the list, only Fiji and Somaliland were not official diplomatic allies.

Taiwan and Somaliland, which broke away from Somalia in 1991 and has faced international isolation since, exchanged representative offices in 2020, and has further improved ties since then, while stopping short of developing formal relations.

Following a basic course, the 65 recruits are participating in four weeks of preparatory training scheduled to end Oct. 28, said Y.C. Tsai, director general of MOFA’s Department of International Cooperation and Economic Affairs.

He said the young men would travel overseas to destinations ranging from the Marshall Islands in the Pacific to Saint Lucia in the Caribbean and Paraguay in South America from early November.

Alternative overseas service lasts 10 months, while the government is considering extending military conscription from four months back to 10 months, possibly beginning in 2024.

 

[InaShaqalle]

While Taiwan and Somaliland haven't established official diplomatic relations, it isn't clear if Taiwan officially recognises Somaliland as an independent country and likewise does Somaliland officially recognise the "Republic of China" (which rules only Taiwan) as a sovereign state?

 

[Dharbaaxo Jin]

While Taiwan and Somaliland haven't established official diplomatic relations, it isn't clear if Taiwan officially recognises Somaliland as an independent country and likewise does Somaliland officially recognise the "Republic of China" (which rules only Taiwan) as a sovereign state?

Somaliland has not officially recognized Taiwan. SL has established the same type of representative office in Taiwan that the US, UK etc have.

Taiwan likewise has a similar stance towards SL, and a similar represenative office in Somaliland.

For SL, the focus of the Taiwan relationship is to benefit from Taiwan's commercial and technological prowess for economic growth purposes. It's early stages but the early returns are very impressive.

 

[InaShaqalle]

@Dharbaaxo Jin you should aim to have a strategic relationship with Taiwan, one that is more than just merely humanitarian in nature

 

[Dharbaaxo Jin]

@Dharbaaxo Jin you should aim to have a strategic relationship with Taiwan, one that is more than just merely humanitarian in nature

That is exactly what Somaliland has. Taiwan is and will be working with SL on improving many different areas from education to commerce and agriculture, as well as many more.

 

[ZodiaK]