Taiwan’s ambassador to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) has conveyed congratulations from President William Lai (賴清德), to the newly elected prime minister of the Caribbean ally state, Godwin Friday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

In a statement, the ministry said Ambassador Fiona Fan (范惠君) delivered Lai’s message and that the prime minister asked her to relay his thanks in return.

The ministry released the statement in response to a media query about the outlook for Taiwan-SVG relations.

Friday’s New Democratic Party (NDP) has previously proposed switching recognition from Taiwan to Beijing, although the new prime minister did not publicly address the issue during the campaign.

He was sworn in after the NDP won 14 of the 15 parliamentary seats in the general election on Friday last week, ending former SVG prime minister Ralph Gonsalves’ 24-year rule.