Taipei, Aug. 19 (CNA) The Presidential Office issued a press release Tuesday denying that Vice President Annette Lu has ever promised to consider delaying the loan repayment schedule for Paraguay.
The Presidential Office issued the press statement at the request of Lu who is now on a transit stop in Seattle after a two-leg Latin American tour to Panama and Paraguay.
Some local media claimed Monday that Lu said during an international news conference held in the Paraguayan capital of Asuncion last Saturday that Taiwan would consider extending the interest-free period for loans to Paraguay and delaying its loan repayments schedule.
The media report was not true, the press statement said, adding that Lu regrets that such an irresponsible, misleading report was made.
During the Asuncion press conference, the statement said, some Paraguayan journalists asked Lu whether the Republic of China government is likely to extend a helping hand as the new Paraguayan government is unable to repay its debts to the ROC.
In response, the statement said, Lu clearly stated that the loans in question were purely commercial deals between the Paraguayan government and two private Taiwan banks -- the International Commercial Bank of China and Chinatrust Commercial Bank. "I'm convinced that the two Taiwan banks will handle the repayment issue properly," Lu was quoted as having said at the news conference.
The statement stressed that Lu did not make any comment regarding the ROC government's possible response to the loan issue, as some local media had reported,