President Chen Shui-bian on September 8 met with His Majesty King Mswati III of the Kingdom of Swaziland and his wife at the Presidential Building. The president, on behalf of the government and people of the ROC (Taiwan), expressed a warm welcome and appreciation to the guests for coming to Taiwan to participate in the First Taiwan-African Heads of State Summit.
President Chen said the two nations have a diplomatic alliance that dates back nearly 40 years to the establishment of formal diplomatic relations in 1968. That happened to be the year that H.M. King Mswati III was born, and since that time ties between the two countries have remained close. The president said he will always remember the statement made by H.M. King Mswati III that the friends of his father are his friends.
The president reiterated his gratitude to H.M. King Mswati III and the government he leads for their staunch support for Taiwan as well as speaking on behalf of Taiwan to participate in the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations (UN). The president furthermore said that Swaziland Prime Minister Absalom T. Dlamini even personally went to Geneva to advocate Taiwan's entrance into the WHO. This year is the first time that Taiwan will apply to enter the UN under the name "Taiwan," hoping to become a new formal member of the international body. Swaziland's representative to the UN is helping Taiwan with the filing of the application, he said.
The president said Taiwan businesses have made substantial investment in Swaziland, with the scale of investment by the textile and garment industries being the most impressive. Based on the existing foundation, he hopes the two countries will continue to engage in cooperation, and that even more high-tech, biotechnology and tourism-related companies from Taiwan will invest in Swaziland.
After the meeting between the two leaders, the foreign ministers of each nation jointly signed the Taiwan-Swaziland Memorandum of Agreement on Medical Cooperation. ROC (Taiwan) Foreign Minister James C.F. Huang and Swaziland Foreign Minister Moses Mathendele Dlamini signed on behalf of their respective nations. President Chen and H.M. King Mswati III witnessed the signing. Attending the ceremony were high-ranking officials and guests from Swaziland, Secretary-General to the President Yeh Chu-lan, and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Yang Tzu-pao. After the formalities, the two leaders, the two foreign ministers and other dignitaries raised their glasses in a toast to long-lasting friendship between the two countries.