Somaliland's top diplomat reaffirms the country's sovereignty

Somaliland's foreign minister reaffirmed the country's sovereignty in the face of China.

Speaking during a visit to Taiwan the top diplomat said that China cannot dictate Somaliland's foreign relations.

"We were born free, we will stay free, and we will own our business the way we want it. China cannot dictate. Other countries cannot dictate who we are going to be" vowed Essa Kayd Mohamoud, Somaliland's Foreign Minister.

The high-level delegation visited Taipei this week in a bid to attract business to the country that remains mostly unrecognised by the rest of the world.

"Our relationship is meant to be beneficial not only to Somaliland and Taiwan but to the global community. It's not meant to be adversarial, it doesn’t distract anything from anyone and it’s a relationship which everybody should be supporting", said Saad Ali Shire, Somaliland's Finance Development Minister.

The visit to Taiwan sparked an angry reaction from mainland China, with Beijing accusing Taiwan of seeking separatism.