Mogadishu. He described the move as both recognition that the Somali authorities were making progress in their national reconstruction efforts and a symbol of the importance that the Chinese government attaches to its bilateral relations with Somalia. On 3 July 2014, Chargé d'Affaires of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China Wei Hongtian presented his credentials to Foreign Minister of Somalia Abdirahman Duale Beyle at an event in the Somali capital. Beyle similarly hailed the appointment as a sign of the nation's strengthening security and foreign diplomatic relations. On 12 October 2014, the new Chinese embassy officially opened in Mogadishu. On 15 December 2014, Wei Hongtian presented his credentials to President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud as the newly appointed Chinese Ambassador to Somalia. He is the first such envoy after the reopening of the Chinese embassy in Mogadishu. Foreign Minister of Somalia Beyle and Ambassador Wei subsequently held a joint press conference, wherein the officials pledged to further strengthen bilateral ties. As part of the local reconstruction process, Wei also indicated that the Chinese authorities were slated to implement various development projects in Somalia. 2020s In July 2020, Somaliland established relations with Taiwan which also included the opening of representative offices in their respective countries. In response, the Chinese foreign ministry claimed that Taiwan aimed to "“underminine Somalia's sovereignty and territorial integrity" and it opposes the two entities establishing ties. Human rights In July 2019, UN ambassadors of 37 countries, including Somalia, have signed a joint letter to the UNHRC defending China's treatment of Uyghurs and other Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang region. In June 2020, Somalia was one of 53 countries that backed the Hong Kong national security law at the United Nations. Agreements In July 2007, the Chinese state-owned oil company CNOOC also signed an oil exploration agreement with the Somali government over the north-central Mudug province, situated in the autonomous Puntland region. In September 2013, both governments signed an official cooperation agreement in Mogadishu as part of a five-year national recovery plan in Somalia. The pact will see the Chinese authorities reconstruct several major infrastructural landmarks in the Somali capital and elsewhere, including the National Theatre, a hospital, and the Mogadishu Stadium, as well as the road between Galkayo and Burao in northern Somalia. Additionally, Chinese ambassador Liu Guangyoun indicated that China would re-open its embassy in Mogadishu on land that had been donated for the