Taiwanese prime minister meets Philippine president

The Taiwanese prime minister, Vincent Siew, has held a meeting in Manila with the president of the Philippines, Fidel Ramos, to discuss the economic situation in East Asia.

The Philippine foreign minister, Roberto de Ocampo, said Mr Siew had offered Taiwanese financial aid to ensure that countries in the region had an adequate supply of currency reserves.

China has responded angrily to the meeting.

A foreign ministry spokesman Shen Guofang said the Philippines should not have official contact with Taiwan if it wanted to maintain diplomatic relations with Beijing.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service