China’s embassy in Skopje has issued a sharp rebuke after North Macedonia’s deputy parliament speaker Antonio Miloshoski met a delegation from Taiwan’s representative office in Rome — a move Beijing says undermines the foundation of bilateral relations.
In an open letter to Miloshoski, the embassy said the meeting “violates the One-China principle and sends a wrong signal to separatist forces advocating Taiwan independence.” It repeated Beijing’s long-held position that Taiwan is an “inalienable part of Chinese territory” and “has never been a state.”
North Macedonia’s parliament published photos of the Nov. 20 meeting, attended by Miloshoski and lawmakers Fatmir Bitici and Rashela Mizrahi. The post later disappeared from the institution’s official website.
Bitici, an SDSM lawmaker, said the talks were strictly work-related. He wrote that he and his colleagues met a delegation led by Vincent Tsai, head of Taiwan’s representative office in Rome, to discuss strengthening parliamentary and economic cooperation, exchanging expertise and encouraging joint investments. Bitici added that the delegation had supported a donation to the University Children’s Clinic in Skopje.
China reminded Skopje that it recognised the government of the People’s Republic of China as the only legitimate government of China in 1993 and reaffirmed that stance in 2001. “Bilateral and international political obligations must be sincerely and fully respected,” the embassy said.
Beijing also warned that such actions could have consequences for economic and political ties. “Is abandoning a vast market in the interest of the Macedonian people?” the embassy asked.
Miloshoski told local outlet 360 Degrees the encounter was a “courtesy meeting with no diplomatic overtones” and did not signal any attempt to change North Macedonia’s China policy. He said it mainly served to express gratitude for Taiwan’s support to the University Children’s Clinic.
He stressed that North Macedonia’s position toward China remains unchanged, respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the People’s Republic of China. “Different opinions are normal in a democratic society,” he said.
Earlier this year, Beijing tried to dissuade Miloshoski and Bitici from joining a summit of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China in Taipei, but both MPs travelled anyway.
A meeting on Tuesday between parliament speaker Afrim Gashi and Chinese ambassador Jiang Xiaoyan came just a day after the Taiwan delegation’s visit, though the embassy did not explicitly link the talks to the dispute.