President Chen said he was especially pleased to meet with the visitors, as he himself once served as the mayor of Taipei. He noted that in May 1998 during his tenure as Taipei mayor, he, along with the mayor of Ottawa and other cities, jointly initiated the World Capitals Forum. He said he is delighted to have the opportunity to meet again with mayors, this time of Canada's Big City Mayors Caucus.
In discussing mutual exchanges and cooperation, President Chen said he hopes to strengthen the relationship between Taiwan and the Big City Mayors Caucus, as well as the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. He said that interaction and cooperation will enable diplomacy between cities in the two nations to help bridge gaps resulting from the lack of formal diplomatic relations between the two countries. Exchanges and cooperation between local governments on Taiwan and the two organizations would certainly help to bolster mutual substantive and friendly cooperative relations between the two countries despite the lack of formal ties, the president said.
President Chen expressed his appreciation on behalf of the people and government of the ROC (Taiwan) to the Canadian government for supporting meaningful participation for Taiwan in the World Health Organization during the World Health Assembly last year. In addition, two years ago Canada's foreign minister publicly expressed his concern and opposition to the passage at the time of the Anti-separation Law by the China's National People's Congress, which is an attempt to provide a legal basis to take military action against Taiwan. President Chen also thanked the Canadian government for its continued stance that any disputes or differences in the Taiwan Strait should be resolved peacefully through dialogue.
President Chen said that despite Taiwan's small size, it is Canada's 11th largest trading partner as well as its fourth largest trading partner in Asia. Bilateral trade between the two countries last year exceeded US$4.3 billion. The president also noted that Taiwan is the seventh largest source of tourists and overseas students for Canada. Presently, approximately 15,000 students from Taiwan are studying in Canada. He said he believes there is still significant room for further growth in travel among people between the two countries.
President Chen said he hopes that despite their short stay on Taiwan, the visitors would take in the various infrastructure projects carried out here and provide any suggestions they might have.
Senator Larry Campbell is the leader of the delegation. Senator Campbell, who previously served as the mayor of Vancouver, expressed his appreciation to President Chen for taking time out of his busy schedule to meet with the group. He added that this trip is aimed at not only learning about things on Taiwan, but also sharing experiences with mayors of Taiwan cities. Senator Campbell said that the operation of city governments throughout the world is similar, with the focus being on handling population, transportation, housing and crime issues. He said he hopes to exchange opinions with mayors of Taiwan cities as well as with officials in the central government.