Taiwan is racing to secure President Lai Ching-te’s attendance to the funeral of Pope Francis, a trip that would give the island’s top official a rare chance to mix with other leaders.

Taiwanese President William Lai will not attend the funeral of Pope Francis on Saturday, with Vice President Chen Chien-jen representing him, local media reported on Wednesday. The Vatican is the only State in Europe that has formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan,

A former Taiwan vice president will attend this weekend's funeral of Pope Francis as the special envoy of President Lai Ching-te, the island's foreign ministry said on Wednesday after it had earlier hoped that Lai would attend.