President Ma Ying-jeou on the morning of October 31 at the Presidential Office met with European Parliament Taiwan Friendship Group Chairman Georg Jarzembowski and his delegation. The president, on behalf of the government and people of the ROC, extended a warm welcome and gratitude to the guests for making the long trip to Taiwan.
The president commented that over 100 members of the 700-plus members of the European Parliament have joined the Taiwan Friendship Group. He added that the trip to Taiwan by the delegation led by Chairman Jarzembowski will have an enormous benefit for relations between the ROC and the EU. Even though a great distance separates the ROC and the EU, the European Parliament in recent years has demonstrated strong support for and friendship to Taiwan, he said. The European Parliament has passed resolutions opposing Mainland China's passage of the Anti-separation Law, expressing opposition to the lifting of a ban on arms sales by EU member nations to China, and supporting observer status for Taiwan in the World Health Assembly (WHA). All of these moves have deeply touched the people of Taiwan, the president said.
In speaking of Taiwan applying to be an observer in the WHA, President Ma said that this is not purely a political issue, but rather one involving human rights. The previous experience of the outbreak of SARS in Taiwan demonstrates that the rights to health of the people of Taiwan cannot be neglected, he said. In order to realize its hopes of becoming an observer in the WHA next year, the government in its proposal to the United Nations (UN) expressed that it sought meaningful participation for Taiwan in activities held by UN-affiliated organizations. Even though the motion filed by Taiwan did not make it to the General Assembly agenda, the United States and the EU both publicly expressed support for it. In addition to expressing his gratitude, President Ma said he hopes the European Parliament will continue to provide support to Taiwan.
In cross-strait ties which concerned the guests, President Ma said his cross-strait policy is one in which Taiwan becomes a peacemaker. He said Taiwan hopes to generate a climate for peace in the Taiwan Strait on the foundation of "no unification, no independence, and no use of force."
In addition to Chairman Jarzembowski, members of the Taiwan Friendship Group visiting Taiwan included MEP Hartmut Nassauer (Germany), MEP Jaroslav Zverina (Czech Republic), and MEP Bastiaan Belder (the Netherlands). The delegation was accompanied to the Presidential Office in the morning by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Andrew Li-Yan Hsia to meet President Ma.