President Ma Ying-jeou met with a delegation of members of the Republic of Korea's National Assembly belonging to the Grand National Party on the afternoon of March 11 at the Presidential Office. The president, on behalf of the government of the ROC (Taiwan), thanked the group for visiting Taiwan and expressed his welcome to them.
The president said that he previously visited Korea when he was Taipei Mayor. On his trip, he met with the then mayor of Seoul, Lee Myung Bak, who is now President of the Republic of Korea. President Ma said the administrative achievements of President Lee when he was mayor, such as restoration of the Cheonggye River, left a deep impression on him. The president added that he is quite pleased by the further development of relations between the ROC and the ROK since he took office. He said that the warm greetings brought by the visiting delegation are a good example of this.
National Assemblywoman Chun Yu-Ok expressed appreciation on behalf of the delegation to the president for taking time out of his busy schedule to meet with them. She also expressed her congratulations on the substantive improvement in relations between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait. Assemblywoman Chun said that an improvement in cross-strait relations is positive for Northeast Asia from a security perspective. She also advocated the signing of a youth working holiday agreement between the two countries, saying she hopes that the ROC government will support the initiative, enabling it to be put into practice as soon as possible.
President Ma noted that the ROC and the ROK are each the fifth largest trading partner of the other, demonstrating the close trading relationship between the two. He said that the trade imbalance last year was quite large, but that this gap is gradually closing. In terms of cultural interaction, the president said that quite a few schools in Taiwan teach Korean, while many universities in Korea also have Chinese language curriculums. Korean TV dramas are quite popular in Taiwan, he said, adding that both sides can strengthen exchanges in the future based on the foundation that already exists.
Turning to the subject of cross-strait relations, the president noted that negotiations resumed after he took office last year, following a hiatus of nearly 10 years. The "three big links" with mainland China have been established, and contact between people of the two sides is increasing, which is having a big benefit in terms of fostering mutual understanding. President Ma expressed his desire that the Korean Peninsula will also be able to gradually move towards peace and prosperity. He noted that the Taiwan Strait and the Korean Peninsula have long been centers of tension in East Asia. Being able to reduce these tensions is sure to have a substantial positive impact on regional stability, he said. President Ma said he hopes the two countries can soon put an end to their status as flashpoints and work together to foster regional peace.
With respect to the youth working holiday agreement, President Ma said that he hopes that a similar agreement with Japan will be realized this year. If the Korean government is willing to discuss such an agreement, Taiwan would be extremely pleased to see it realized. He noted that young people from Taiwan quite enjoy visiting Korea.
Lastly, the president expressed his hopes that the visitors take advantage of their several days here to learn more about Taiwan. He said he hopes they will continue to support Taiwan and strengthen interaction between the parliaments of the two nations in the pursuit of greater wellbeing for the people of the two countries.