Deputy Secretary-General to the President Chen Chi-mai on August 17 convened a press conference at the Presidential Building ahead of President Chen Shui-bian's trip to Honduras to attend the Sixth Summit of the Heads of States and Governments of the Republic of China (Taiwan), Central America and the Dominican Republic. The president will leave for Latin America on August 21. He will attend the summit that will be held in the capital of Tegucigalpa. He will visit El Salvador and Nicaragua en route.
The purpose of President Chen's trip this time is to attend the upcoming summit meeting. Honduras President Manuel Zelaya Rosales has placed great importance on the visit by President Chen and his delegation, and has suggested that this trip to Honduras be classified as a State Visit. President Zelaya has arranged for the ROC (Taiwan) delegation to make a number of official visits and attend various activities before taking part in the summit. At present, leaders or deputy heads of state who are expected to attend the upcoming summit include: Belize Prime Minister Said Musa, Guatemala President Oscar Berger Perdomo, El Salvador President Elias Antonio Saca, Honduras President Manuel Zelaya Rosales, Panama President Martin Torrijos Espino, Nicaragua Vice President Jaime Morales Carazo, and Dominican Republic Vice President Rafael Alburquerque.
After the summit, President Chen will visit El Salvador, making his first trip there since 2001. He will also make a trip to Nicaragua. The president visited Nicaragua in January of this year to attend the inauguration of President Daniel Ortega Saavedra. Since President Ortega has taken office, the leaders of the two nations have spoken over the telephone a number of times to solidify the friendship and alliance between the two countries. President Ortega has recently on a number of occasions publicly expressed his support for the diplomatic alliance between Taiwan and Nicaragua and has reiterated that relations between the two are stable. President Chen will visit Nicaragua in an effort to further strengthen the ties between the two countries.
The president's journey to the region this time is being labeled "The Trip of Joint Grand Vision and Eternal Concern." In addition to taking part in the aforementioned summit and making visits to the diplomatic allies of El Salvador and Nicaragua, the journey is aimed at expressing Taiwan's interest in cooperation and mutual assistance with its friends, no matter how long diplomatic relations have been maintained with these nations. The journey will highlight the importance that Taiwan places on its relationship with diplomatic allies and its willingness to further strengthen its strategic partnerships and relationships with them based on the existing foundation of mutual benefit.
President Chen is expected to leave Taipei on August 21 and will make a transit stop in Alaska. He will arrive in Honduras for a four-day stay on August 21. The president and his entourage will leave Honduras and head to El Salvador on August 24 and then to Nicaragua on August 26. On August 28, the president will conclude his visit and make another transit stop in the United States before returning to Taipei on August 29.
Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua have long maintained diplomatic relations with the ROC (Taiwan). For decades, the ROC (Taiwan) has engaged in economic and technical cooperation with these countries to assist in their development, and the bilateral relationships with these nations have become increasingly close as a result. The upcoming visits to the countries by President Chen will not only further solidify the alliances with them, but will offer an opportunity to meet with overseas compatriots residing in these nations, as well as boost morale among the diplomatic corps stationed there.
In addition to expanding interaction between Taiwan and the international community, "The Trip of Joint Grand Vision and Eternal Concern" will increase understanding of and support for Taiwan among other countries. Taiwan is confident that the journey will also promote the nation's international image as a country pursuing the universal values of democracy, peace and human rights.