President Tsai arrives in Nicaragua
President Tsai Ing-wen continued with her trip in Central America, codenamed the "Ing-Jie Project," arriving with her delegation in Nicaragua's Managua Air Force Base at 4:30 p.m. on Monday, January 10 local time (6:30 a.m. on January 11 Taipei time).
After President Tsai's chartered aircraft came to a halt on the tarmac, ROC Ambassador to Nicaragua Rolando Jer-ming Chuang (莊哲銘) and Roberto Quant, the chief of Nicaragua's presidential protocol department, boarded the plane to welcome her. Denis Moncada, the Nicaraguan president's advisor for policy and international affairs, welcomed President Tsai at the foot of the airstair, and then accompanied her in accepting a red-carpet military honor guard salute.
President Tsai said she was honored to come to Nicaragua to attend the inauguration of President Daniel Ortega Saavedra and Vice President Rosario Murillo. On behalf of all of Taiwan, President Tsai extended the warmest greetings to the government and people of Nicaragua.
President Tsai stated that she had heard long ago that Nicaragua was a beautiful "land of volcanos and lakes," and now that she has finally set foot on Nicaraguan soil, she was looking forward to a smooth and successful visit.
President Tsai indicated that Taiwan and Nicaragua have always maintained very close and friendly relations, and that President Ortega is an old friend of Taiwan's. In recent years, political, economic, and cultural interactions between Taiwan and Nicaragua have grown even closer and more frequent than before.
President Tsai said she was looking forward to conducting more in-depth discussions during this visit with respect to bilateral cooperation and exchanges, and she also hoped to exchange views with President Ortega and Vice President Murillo regarding bilateral relations and other matters of shared concern, so that the two countries can work together to enhance their friendship and improve their people's lives.
Shortly thereafter, President Tsai proceeded to the Hotel Crowne Plaza Managua where she was staying. There she was enthusiastically greeted by representatives of the Taiwanese expatriate community, students from a local Chinese school, and a group of Nicaraguans who had studied previously in Taiwan. She also received flowers from local Chinese beauty queen Virginia Chow and others.