Taipei, May 31 (CNA) The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) is planning a visit by President Tsai Ing-wen to Taiwan's diplomatic allies in the South Pacific in July, Deputy Foreign Minister Chang Wen-liang said on Wednesday.
Since taking office in May last year, Tsai has made two foreign visits, both of which took her to six Republic of China allies in Latin America, Chang said at a legislative hearing.
It would be a "very good arrangement" for South Pacific countries to be the locations of Tsai's next overseas trip, he said, adding that visits by the president to the country's allies will help boost mutual friendship.
Chang was answering questions raised by Legislator Lu Yu-ling of the opposition Kuomintang about the details of Tsai's planned trip in July.
In the past year, Tsai has embarked on two overseas trips, the first of which happened in June last year, and the other in January. The first journey took Tsai to Panama and Paraguay, and on her second trip, she went to Honduras, Nicaragua, Guatemala and El Salvador.
Taiwan currently maintains diplomatic relations with 21 countries, six of which are in the South Pacific. They are Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau, Solomon lslands and Tuvalu.
