Taipei, April 17 (CNA)President Chen Shui-bian expressed appreciation to the Costa Rican legislature for passing a resolution on Oct. 3, 2002, which urged mainland China to remove missiles deployed in its southeastern coast opposite Taiwan, and that both sides should resolve their disputes in a peaceful way.
The president said that bilateral relations between the two countries have exceeded 60 years and that both sides have cooperated in various fields, and the Taiwan friendship bridge in Costa Rica is the embodiment of that solid relationship.
The president made the remarks when he was receiving a visiting lawmaker delegation from the legislature of the central American country.
Pointing out that construction work on the bridge in Costa Rica has been completed and that the bridge is scheduled to be inaugurated this May or June, the president expressed the hope of leading a delegation to the country during that time to witness the ceremony.
The president also said that there is no border in medical care and combating disease, saying that the outbreak of severe acute respiratory disease (SARS), which has affected 3,293 persons in 24 countries, causing 159 deaths according to the latest figures of the World Health Organization.
Though Taiwan is also affected by SARS, the president said there has been no deaths so far, no community infection and no exports of SARS patients to other countries, adding that Taiwan's quarantine efforts have won recognition even from the WHO, but that Taiwan is unjustly left out of the organization.
He said he wanted to express his appreciation for the Costa Rican government and people for their continued support of Taiwan's bid to enter into international organizations.
The visiting Costa Rica lawmakers, led by Vice Speaker of the Legislative Assembly Federico Malavassi Calvo, lauded the rapid economic growth of the Republic of China and expressed the hope of learning from the success story of the country. They also vowed to staunchly support Taiwan's bid to enter international organizations.