Vice President Annette Lu on the morning of January 28 convened a press conference at the Presidential Building ahead of her departure on a trip to the nation's diplomatic allies in the South Pacific. The vice president will travel to the Marshall Islands, Nauru and the Solomon Islands.
Vice President Lu, serving as an emissary of President Chen, departed at 9:30 p.m. to lead a delegation to the Republic of Nauru. The vice president will attend celebratory activities held by Nauru on January 31 to mark its 40th anniversary of independence. While in the region, the vice president will also make stops in the Marshall Islands and the Solomon Islands.
At the morning press conference, Vice President Lu said that this is her second visit to South Pacific island nation allies. The ROC (Taiwan) presently has diplomatic allies in three main regions, namely Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa and the South Pacific. She said that the importance of Taiwan's diplomatic alliances with these nations cannot be over-emphasized. Pacific island nations not only have abundant natural resources, but also a strategic geographical importance. The vice president said she is honored to have the opportunity to serve as President Chen's special envoy in attending the celebration in the Republic of Nauru marking that nation's 40th anniversary of independence, as well as visiting other allies in the region and meeting with the new leaders of the countries on her itinerary.
Vice President Lu specifically mentioned that the three countries she will be visiting all recently installed new leaders. For instance, Marshall Islands President Litokwa Tomeing just took office earlier this month, while Solomon Islands Prime Minister Derek Sikua assumed his post in December. Meanwhile, Nauru President Marcus Stephen is also new to his position. Therefore, this trip can also be looked upon as an opportunity to build new friendships with the leaders of these nations.
Vice President Lu said the Solomon Islands is home to a population of 530,000 people, while the Marshall Islands has 60,000 people and Nauru has a population of 9,000. While these nations do not have large numbers of people, they are all members of the United Nations (UN). Taiwan, however, with its population of 23 million people, has not been allowed to enter the world body. In light of this, the vice president urged the people of Taiwan to make every effort possible to let the world hear the voices of Taiwan. She said she believes that when the UN General Assembly is convened later this year, Taiwan's new leader will help the nation move toward the goal of gaining membership. The vice president also expressed her appreciation that the three nations she will visit have all advocated Taiwan's entry into the UN.
The vice president's pre-departure press conference was held at 11:30 a.m. at the Presidential Building's Press Center. Foreign Minister James C. F. Huang, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Elizabeth Y. F. Chu and Deputy Secretary-General to the President Lin Chia-lung were all present during the press conference.