On December 26th, President Chen Shui-bian met with board members of three overseas Chinese schools in the greater Tokyo, Yokohama, and Osaka areas, and expressed his sincerest respect and thanks to the delegation for their longstanding support for Taiwan and their contributions to the relationship between Taiwan and Japan.
According to President Chen, the Taiwan-Japan trade exceeded US$60 billion in 2005, with Japan enjoying a surplus of more than US$30 billion. In addition, the number of visits between the two countries hit a record high of 2.4 million in the same year. President Chen took the opportunity to express his thanks to the Japanese government and legislature for granting visa-free treatment to Taiwanese tourists.
President Chen indicated that after six years of construction, the Taiwan High Speed Rail (THSR), known as "Taiwan's Shinkansen," just passed the final security check and would soon start its business operation. Hailing the system as a model for other BOT cases, the President expressed his hope that the schedule of his guests will allow them to travel by this new rail system so that they can compare it with the Japanese Shinkansen system.
President Chen further pointed out that in 2004, 1,600 Japanese high school students studied in Taiwan and the figure is expected to exceed 4,000 this year, saying that he looks forward to seeing more Japanese students studying in Taiwan in the future. He stressed that the relationship between Taiwan and Japan in recent years has been in its best shape since the two severed their diplomatic ties. This has come as a result of the efforts of many, but the most important factor lies in their common belief in the universal values of democracy, freedom and human rights that has bound them together, President Chen added.