President Chen Shui-bian on October 24 met with a delegation from the Solomon Islands led by Deputy Prime Minister Toswell Kaua. The president, on behalf of the government and 23 million people of the ROC (Taiwan), extended a warm welcome to the delegation.
President Chen said that less than two weeks ago he met with Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare and his wife at the Second Taiwan-Pacific Allies Summit. He said the summit was quite a success, and that just 12 days later Deputy Prime Minister Kaua has led a delegation to Taipei, including ruling and opposition party lawmakers. This exhibits the strong alliance between the two nations and indicates the progress made in promoting high level visits by officials of each country to the other.
The president lauded Deputy Prime Minister Kaua for his substantial experience in government administration and as a civil servant. In addition to serving in the past as minister of education, minister of justice and minister of interior, he has also held the posts of deputy secretary and secretary to the prime minister. During his tenure as deputy prime minister, he has also served as minister of energy, minister of agriculture and livestock. Deputy Prime Minister Kaua presently also serves as minister for public service. President Chen said that given his guest's well-rounded background, he is the perfect deputy for Prime Minister Sogavare.
President Chen said that in January of this year Taiwan's Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Chang Siao-yue visited the Solomon Islands and received a warm reception from Deputy Prime Minister Kaua. During her visit to the Solomon Islands, Vice Minister Chang signed a cooperation framework agreement as well as an agreement under which volunteer service workers from Taiwan will be sent to the Solomon Islands. Both of these agreements signify that substantive cooperative relations between the two countries have been taken to a new level, President Chen said. In addition, when the minister of agriculture from Vanuatu visited the Solomon Islands in August, Deputy Prime Minister Kaua escorted him to visit Taiwan's agricultural mission stationed in the Solomon Islands and praised the work carried out by the mission. President Chen expressed his appreciation to Deputy Prime Minister Kaua for speaking on behalf of Taiwan and helping to pave the way for more friendships.
The president also spoke of his gratitude to the Solomon Islands for supporting Taiwan's participation in international organizations. He said the government and people of the Solomon Islands have been strong proponents of Taiwan's bid in recent years to participate in the World Health Organization. In addition, the prime minister and minister of foreign affairs have spoken up on behalf of Taiwan in the international arena. The president is confident that the two countries will be able to continue to strengthen their relationship as island democracies and bolster their cooperative ties, jointly promoting social, agricultural and medical development in the Solomon Islands.
Deputy Prime Minister Kaua thanked President Chen for taking time out of his busy schedule to meet with him and also congratulated him on the success of the Second Taiwan-Pacific Allies Summit. He also expressed his gratitude to the president for Taiwan's contributions to assisting in the economic and social development of the Solomon Islands.