President Ma Ying-jeou met on the morning of December 1 with a delegation led by Chairman of France's New Centre party and former Defense Minister Herve Morin. In addition to welcoming the group to Taiwan, the president also expressed hope for continued strengthening of bilateral interaction and cooperation.
In remarks, President Ma stated that this was the first trip to Taiwan for National Assembly member Morin, Chairman Yvan Lachaud of the Agglomeration Community of Nimes Metropole, and President Emmanuel Dupuy of the Institute for European Perspective and Security. President Ma added that Mr. Morin had arranged for over 10 business leaders from the Normandy region to join the delegation on this trip to interact with local counterparts and promote bilateral economic and trade ties.
Commenting on the "9 in 1" elections held in Taiwan on November 29 this year, the president said that over 11,000 public servants were elected, making this the largest election in ROC history. He noted that the elections were just, fair, and open, and the results were revealed on the evening of the polls, with very few disputes. Even more importantly, said the president, the losing candidates graciously accepted defeat as expected in a democracy, which has further deepened Taiwan's democracy.
President Ma stated that Taiwan and France share the core values of freedom, democracy, rule of law, and human rights. In addition, the results of this election have enabled the international community to understand the state of freedom and democracy in Taiwan, he said. The president went on to say that when he was elected in 2008, former US President George W. Bush sent him a message of congratulations in which he praised Taiwan as a "beacon of democracy to Asia and the world." This, President Ma remarked, highlights that the ROC's democratic achievements are recognized by the world community.
The president mentioned that Taiwan and France maintain close interaction. In the area of economic and trade ties, France is Taiwan's fourth largest trading partner in Europe, while Taiwan is France's ninth largest trading partner in Asia, he said. In the first 10 months of this year, the value of bilateral trade reached €2.8 billion (about US$3.5 billion), up 4.8% year-on-year, he stated, expressing hope that bilateral economic and trade cooperation will continue to grow.
As for cooperation in the field of technology, the president noted, France is Taiwan's second largest partner in technology cooperation, behind only the United States. The two sides over the years have engaged in 58 cooperative projects, achieving considerable success, he said. President Ma called for further strengthening of cooperation and interaction in the areas of a green energy economy, sustainable development, and innovative research and development.
Turning to the subject of agricultural cooperation, the president stated that in March of this year Taiwan opened its doors to imports of French pork, of which it has now purchased about 850 metric tons, and the two sides are now discussing the details of a plan for the export of French poultry to Taiwan. A delegation led by the deputy head of France's Food Processing Industry and Forestry Directorate-General for Food (under the Ministry of Agriculture) is expected to arrive in Taiwan on December 2 to promote France's agricultural products and cuisine here, President Ma mentioned, and the two sides last year reached a consensus on the content of an agreement on cooperation in agriculture. He expressed hope that this agreement can be signed as soon as possible.
In the area of culture and education, the president stated that institutes of higher education in Taiwan and France have signed over 300 cooperation agreements, and that about 2,500 students from Taiwan are studying in France, while about 1,300 students from France are studying in Taiwan. In addition, he noted, each year on average over 50 French films are screened in Taiwan, more than anywhere else in Asia. Roughly 30 cultural groups from France come to Taiwan to perform each year, while over 40 artistic and cultural groups from Taiwan hold performances in France annually, he stated. These exchanges play an important role in forging cultural interaction between the two sides, the president said.
President Ma stated that in a bid to promote interaction between youth in Taiwan and European countries, Taiwan in recent years has signed youth working holiday agreements with Germany, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Belgium, Hungary, Slovakia, Poland, and Austria. Taiwan and France have begun negotiations a working holiday agreement, and he expressed confidence that the youth exchange mechanism will soon be established as it is strongly supported by the governments of the two countries.
The president also mentioned that even though Taiwan and France maintain close ties in many fields, there is still room for further improvement in the political arena. He called on the French government to adopt an even more pragmatic and forward-looking approach to boost bilateral relations.
President Ma then discussed the state of relations between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait. He explained to the visitors that he immediately sought to improve cross-strait relations upon taking office in 2008. To date, the two sides have signed 21 agreements, helping to bring the greatest level of peace and stability to the Taiwan Strait in the past 65 years. In addition, Minister Wang Yu-Chi (王郁琦) of Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council and Minister Zhang Zhijun (張志軍) of mainland China's Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council have held four rounds of talks over the past year, he said, pointing out that the two have addressed each other by their official titles, which is extremely significant. But even as the Taiwan government actively works for cross-strait peace, remarked the president, it also takes the stance that a strong national defense is the foundation of peace. It has employed "asymmetric" and "innovative" thinking in creating a military force that, while small, is also strong, specialized, and skillful, he said.
Addressing the recent call by the Hong Kong public for universal suffrage in electing the chief executive, President Ma commented that the ROC always supports democracy, but opposes violence. He called on the Hong Kong government and people to use peaceful and rational means to reach a consensus on this issue as soon as possible.
The president also brought up Taiwan's active efforts to participate in regional economic integration. He stated that in 2011 Taiwan and Japan signed the Taiwan-Japan Bilateral Investment Arrangement, and last year Taiwan signed the ANZTEC and ASTEP economic cooperation agreements with New Zealand and Singapore, respectively. These were concrete demonstrations of Taiwan's sincere determination to pursue trade liberalization, he said. President Ma expressed hope that Taiwan can sign an economic cooperation agreement or bilateral investment agreement with the European Union in order to deepen cooperation and exchange.
The president also thanked France for supporting Taiwan's participation in international organizations, and expressed hope that France will continue helping Taiwan to take meaningful part in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change so that Taiwan can contribute to energy conservation, carbon reduction, and stable global development.