Taipei, June 1 (CNA) The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said on Thursday that it is unlikely President Tsai Ing-wen will undertake a foreign visit in July because no itinerary has yet been planned.
MOFA spokeswoman Eleanor Wang denied media reports that Tsai would visit diplomatic allies overseas in July during a regular press conference at the ministry. She said MOFA is still working on an outline itinerary for the trip.
As to which countries Tsai plans to visit, that depends on the schedules of government leaders in those nations, Wang said.
"More time is needed" for a visit to be planned. Currently no decision has been made as to destinations, she said.
One of MOFA's key tasks each year is planning and executing foreign visits by government leaders, according to Wang.
As such a visit involves a wide range of areas and complex details, the ministry first drafts a plan which it then presents to the Presidential Office, she said.
Deputy Foreign Minister Chang Wen-liang said on Wednesday that diplomatic allies in the South Pacific will be the focus of Tsai's next overseas trip, as the president already visited six allies in Latin America during her two previous foreign visits in June 2016 and January this year.
It would be a "very good arrangement" for South Pacific countries to be the focus of Tsai's next overseas trip, he said, because visits by the president to the country's allies always helps to boost mutual friendship.
