President Hwang of the American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei; Director Young of the American Institute in Taiwan; President Yao of the Examination Yuan; Secretary-General Chen of the National Security Council; Chairman Wu of the Mainland Affairs Council; Chairman Hu of the Financial Supervisory Commission; Chairperson Ho of the Council for Economic Planning and Development; Taipei Mayor Hau; Distinguished Guests; Ladies and Gentlemen:
Good Evening!
I am very pleased to have been once again invited to attend AmCham's annual "Hsieh Nien Fan" banquet. On behalf of Taiwan's government and its 23 million people, I would like to say a belated "Happy New Year" to our American friends and wish all of you many blessings and great success in this Year of the Golden Pig, which is believed to bring with it wealth, success, and an abundant harvest.
For many consecutive years, the annual "Hsieh Nien Fan" banquet happened to take place either on my birthday or on my wedding anniversary. This year's does not fall on either, but today is also very special because March 20 was the auspicious day upon which I was re-elected president three years ago.
Our nation is said to have enjoyed unprecedented publicity in the United States last year because of the performance of Taiwan's Wang Chien-ming, who plays for the New York Yankees. Having just made his Major League debut in 2005, Wang led the major league with a career-high 19 wins in his 2006 sophomore season, for which he was dubbed a "Pitching King." Wang's brilliant performance can be attributed both to his own hard work and to the Yankee coaches' trust in and respect for him, which helped create a favorable environment for Wang to concentrate and shine on the mound. Wang's wins contributed to one of the best seasons that the Yankees have ever had, a feat for which his fellow countrymen in Taiwan all feel very proud.
As the Yankees have embraced Wang, Taiwan's people have also embraced the Yankees; such mutual feeling is a concrete reflection of the lasting friendship between the people of Taiwan and the US. Taiwan is the US's eighth largest trading partner and sixth largest agricultural trading partner. Last year, total bilateral trade volume exceeded US$60 billion. What's more, Taiwan is the US's second-largest semiconductor supplier and fifth-largest source country of high-tech imports.
Recently, I was invited by the American firm Corning Incorporated to visit its liquid crystal display glass substrate manufacturing facility in the Central Taiwan Science Park. The facility, which cost US$1.5 billion to construct, is the single largest investment that Corning has made in its 152-year history. Corning's decision to locate such an important facility in Taiwan is a strong demonstration of American companies' confidence in Taiwan's investment environment and technology.
Taiwan and the US are not merely trading partners but also values-based partners in the pursuit of freedom and democracy. Public opinion polls over the years have consistently shown the US to be one of the nations most held in high regard by Taiwan's people. These polls have also shown that this favorable opinion comes not because the US is the world's foremost military power or has a prosperous economy, but because people in both the US and Taiwan share a belief in universal values such as freedom, democracy, human rights, peace, and justice.
The US is the leader of the global community of democracies, and Taiwan's democracy is that community's greatest success story over the past fifty years. Seven years ago, I was elected president, which ushered in the first-ever transfer of power between political parties in this country. In 2004, I was re-elected president. The 2000 and 2004 presidential elections and the peaceful settlement of post-election disputes in 2004 can all be seen as not only victories for Taiwan's democracy, but also victories for the spirit upon which America was founded.
After World War II, Japan was the only democracy in Asia. Today, Taiwan, South Korea, the Philippines, and Indonesia have all joined the community of free and democratic countries, and the seeds of democracy have been sown and begun to sprout in other Southeast Asian nations. Such a development is one of the major contributions that the US and the world community of democracies have made to humanity. Taiwan is proud to have set an example for other countries during this latest wave of democratization, and is willing to make a greater effort to help spread democracy throughout the world.
In the face of unpredictable international developments and China's rapid military expansion, however, we believe that any failure of or setback for democracy in Taiwan would be a heavy blow to the global democratic community and might even trigger tension, confrontation, conflict, and instability in the Asia-Pacific region.
Thanks to their untiring efforts, for over two decades, Taiwan's people have enjoyed remarkable prosperity and progress. Another important factor that has contributed to Taiwan's prosperity and progress has been the commitment of the US, Japan, and other democracies in the Asia-Pacific region to safeguarding peace, security, and stability in East Asia. I would like, therefore, to take this opportunity to express our appreciation to these nations for their contributions in this respect.
Taiwan is a member of and responsible stakeholder in the international community. We are well aware of where the US's interests lie, of Taiwan's advantages and constraints in the international community, and of our international responsibilities and obligations. For peace in the Taiwan Strait and for regional prosperity, Taiwan will not only keep its promise to enhance its self-defense capabilities but also uphold its pledges to maintain the peaceful status quo in the Taiwan Strait. Our commitment to the US government and President Bush will also remain unchanged.
Peace in the Taiwan Strait is the rock upon which is built prosperity and progress in the Asia-Pacific. Further expansion of cross-strait trade and economic relations demands a more peaceful and secure Taiwan Strait. Yet China, an authoritarian regime bent on rapidly expanding its military, has spared no effort in enhancing the capabilities of its navy and air force, in a bid to break through the first island chain and reach the second island chain, in which Guam is located. Such an expansion of military might already far exceeds China's self-defense needs and poses a serious threat to its neighbors.
China is a huge market with many business opportunities, but as long as its one-party, totalitarian regime remains in power, this market will remain unstable and highly risky because Beijing may, at any time, choose to invade other nations as a means of shifting its people's attention away from internal political contradictions. We cannot be blind to such a possibility. Therefore, I would like to restate my recommendation that Taiwan, the US, and China should jointly manage peace, security, and stability in the Taiwan Strait so as to prevent prosperity and progress in the Asia-Pacific region from being threatened or harmed.
You might already have learned from media reports that Chairman of the Mainland Affairs Council Joseph Wu has been named the new head of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Washington, D.C. Chairman Wu is with us here tonight. Please give him a round of applause to encourage him. I would like to express my appreciation to President Bush and the US government for having so expeditiously approved the appointment of Dr. Wu as our new representative to the US. I would also like to express my most heartfelt approbation of outgoing Representative David Lee's professional and outstanding performance during his service in Washington. On behalf of Taiwan's government, I will soon confer upon him a medal to honor his long-term commitment and contributions to our nation's diplomatic work. I hope that Representative Wu will build upon the foundation laid by Representative Lee to improve Taiwan-US relations, so that both countries may continue to cooperate closely to safeguard freedom, democracy, security, and stability in the Asia-Pacific region.
In closing, I would like to once again thank AmCham for having invited me to this banquet. Let us wish Taiwan and the US great success and lasting prosperity. To all our friends here, may you enjoy good health and happiness. Thank you.