Taipei, Dec. 16 (CNA) President Chen Shui-bian pledged Thursday to further promote cooperation and relations between Taiwan and the Marshall Islands.
Speaking at a state banquet he hosted to entertain his Marshall Islands counterpart Kessai Note in Taitung, eastern Taiwan, Chen said that Taiwan and the South Pacific island nation have many common characteristics and should increase cooperation and exchanges for their mutual benefit.
In response, Note thanked Chen for inviting him to visit Taiwan again and said that he is pleased to see that the relations between the two nations have been strengthened over the years.
He assured Chen that the relations will get even closer.
Accompanied by Chen, Presidential Office Secretary-General Su Tseng-chang and Minister of Foreign Affairs Tan Sun Chen, Note also visited various cultural and economic establishments in Taitung, including the National Prehistory Museum and aboriginal tribes.
Note arrived in Taiwan Tuesday for a five-day official visit.