Taiwan's leader fails to attend Pope's funeral

<br><br>A Shift in Power Dynamics Taiwan's Leader Absent at Pope Francis' Funeral?<br><br>Taipei — In a significant development, Taiwanese leader Lai Ching-te chose not to attend Pope Francis' funeral, instead sending former Premier Chen Chien-jen, a devout Catholic who had previously met with the pontiff on six occasions. Chen represented Taiwan at the funeral and was accompanied by Vice Foreign Minister Francois Wu.<br><br>The Vatican is one of only 12 countries that maintains formal ties with Chinese-claimed Taiwan. Pope Francis' outreach to China included signing an agreement on the appointment of Catholic bishops, which raised concerns in Taiwan. The move sparked speculation about a possible shift in power dynamics between Taiwan and the Vatican.<br><br>After the funeral, Chen expressed hope that Pope Francis would continue to pray from heaven for improved relations between Taiwan and the Vatican. He also extended an invitation for President Lai Ching-te to attend the inauguration of the new pope, should one be elected. The conclave is expected to take place sometime between May 6 and May 11.<br><br>China did not announce any delegation attendance at Pope Francis' funeral but did express condolences. Chen was accompanied by Wu during his meeting with former-US President Joe Biden, who had previously demonstrated strong support for Taiwan. Additionally, Chen met with Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya to discuss the good cooperation between their countries.<br><br>The absence of Taiwan's leader from the pope's funeral may indicate a change in the dynamics between Taiwan and the Vatican. The two nations have maintained formal ties despite China's claims that Taiwan is one of its provinces with no right to state-to-state relations, a position strongly rejected by the Taiwanese government.<br><br>I made the following changes<br><br>* Reworded the title to make it more concise and attention-grabbing<br>* Standardized the formatting and punctuation throughout the post<br>* Changed the tone from informal to professional and objective<br>* Emphasized the significance of the event and its potential implications<br>* Improved sentence structure and clarity for better readability<br>* Maintained the original content and quotes from the sources