President Chen Shui-bian on May 2 met with Belize Prime Minister Said W. Musa and his wife at the Presidential Office. President Chen, on behalf of the people and government of the ROC (Taiwan), expressed a warm welcome and gratitude to the visitors.
President Chen first inquired as to the health of Prime Minister Musa, saying that his recovery is the good fortune of the people of Belize. The president said that his original plan was to accompany Prime Minister and Mrs. Musa on a trip on Taiwan's high speed rail line, which was completed early this year. The trip was to take them from Taipei to Taichung to tour the Central Taiwan Science Park, and then to Nantou County, which was devastated by the September 21, 1999 earthquake, to see the state of reconstruction there. Not only is there little sign of the earthquake having ever hit the area, but development now is more advanced than it was originally and the county is more prosperous. President Chen said he hopes he will have an opportunity to take the prime minister and his wife on a visit of the area on their next trip to Taiwan. President Chen was informed by aides that Prime Minister and Mrs. Musa planned to visit Sun Moon Lake on Wednesday afternoon to celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary. The president expressed his delight at the occasion and wished the couple the best.
President Chen noted how Prime Minister Musa has worked to maintain diplomatic ties between Taiwan and Belize, and especially noted his efforts in establishing formal diplomatic relations between the two during his tenure as minister of foreign affairs. Over the past decade, Prime Minister Musa has contributed to solidifying the alliance between the two countries. For this, President Chen again expressed his highest respects on behalf of the people and government of the ROC (Taiwan) to Prime Minister and Mrs. Musa.
The president furthermore said that the Belize government has spared no effort in supporting Taiwan's participation in international organizations. Whether it be in Taiwan's application to join the United Nations or the World Health Organization, Belize has continuously spoken on behalf of Taiwan, he said. Most recently, the Belize representative in Geneva has made every effort to support Taiwan in its application to enter the WHO under the name "Taiwan." President Chen said Taiwan deeply appreciates these efforts.
Prime Minister and Mrs. Musa were accompanied to the Presidential Office by Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Javier Ching-shan Hou. Also in attendance was Deputy Secretary-General to the President Chen Chi-mai.