User:Qin Cangzhou/North Macedonia–Taiwan relations

The North Macedonia–Taiwan relationship refers to the bilateral relationship between North Macedonia and Taiwan. Diplomatic relations were established in 1999, but were severed in 2001 after the fall of Macedonia's pro-Taiwan cabinet. In addition to its traditional ally, the Vatican, Macedonia was the first new Eastern European ally in the 1990s and the first European country to sign a formal military agreement with Taiwan.

China is strongly dissatisfied with the official relations between Macedonia and Taiwan, and has adopted diplomatic punishments for Macedonia by severing diplomatic relations and using the UN veto power respectively.

Initial contact
The relationship began in the late 1990s with Taiwan's aid program for Kosovo, when Lee Teng-hui announced in 1998 that he would provide $300 million to help rebuild Kosovo after the war. Taiwan's R.O.C. government hired Ambassador-at-Large Chiu Hungdah, Jeffrey Koo Sr., and Gene Loh I-Cheng to prepare the aid program.

The initial plan of Lee Teng-hui's administration is that Taiwan's only diplomatic relations in Europe are with the Holy See, Macedonia is the first beachhead, and if diplomatic relations are established with it, it is possible to extend diplomacy to Kosovo and even Albania. Executive Yuan President Siew Wan-chang led a delegation to Macedonia, along with five legislators, to begin the visit.

The Macedonian constitution is a cabinet system. The then Prime Minister of Macedonia, Ljubco Georgievski, was only 33 years old. Georgievski had heard of Taiwan miracle when he lived in the United States and was interested in establishing diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Jevski and the main VMRO-DPMNE party disagreed and formed another VMNO-NP party, and even restored Bulgarian nationality and moved to Sofia, reflecting the multi-ethnic character of the Balkan Peninsula.

On August 5, 1998, ambassador-at-Large Gene Loh I-Cheng was going to travel to Pristina first, but the exposure of US$300 million in aid in the Taiwanese media caused discontent among some European countries. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization troops stationed in Kosovo were unwilling to open the border to Taiwanese, and the Macedonia government was unable to send troops to protect the Taiwan delegation outside the country, so the trip was temporarily canceled.