President Ma Ying-jeou returned to Taiwan at 8:00 p.m. on March 27 after a journey that took him to the ROC's six allies in the South Pacific. The president delivered remarks at the airport upon his return.
The president commented that this trip to the nation's six diplomatic allies in the South Pacific had three objectives. The first was to solidify the alliance the ROC maintains with each of its allies. The second, he said, was to strengthen aid to these countries, and the third was to bolster interaction. The president said he is pleased that all three of these goals were achieved.
In terms of solidifying diplomatic alliances, the president said that since embracing the policy of flexible diplomacy, some people have taken the nation's decision to adopt a diplomatic truce as a diplomatic downtime, diplomatic holiday, or even a diplomatic "state of shock." In fact, he said, none of this is the case. President Ma said that it is true that some of the content of the ROC's foreign policy has changed. Nonetheless, the most important facet of the nation's foreign policy is to solidify alliances with our existing diplomatic partners and to strengthen relations with countries with which we do not maintain diplomatic ties.
The president remarked that two years ago when he first took office, some of the ROC's allies were concerned that the new administration's efforts to strengthen ties with mainland China might result in the ROC's neglect of its friends, but this trip demonstrates that we are not neglecting our friends. Indeed, we are placing even more importance on the relationship with them, he said.
Another goal of this trip was related to foreign aid, the president said. President Ma admitted that in the past, the ROC's foreign aid work has been criticized on occasion. He said that he clearly sought to send a message in each of the places he visited this time that all of the ROC's foreign aid projects must have proper goals, conform to legal processes, and feature effective administration. In other words, he said, all aid projects must exhibit accountability, transparency and good governance. This message was passed along to all of the people he met during the trip, he said, adding that he also requested each of the ROC ambassadors in the respective nations to make sure that these principles are fully adhered to.
President Ma said that the opportunity on this trip to pay a visit to the Regional Assistance to Solomon Islands (RAMSI) organization symbolizes that the ROC's relationship with Australia is improving, since RAMSI is a regional body led by Australia. He said that in the past, relations between the two sides had been extremely limited. The president commented that this time, however, he made a formal visit to the organization and received a briefing from officials there. He said that officials in RAMSI agree with the methods adopted by the ROC, which he was extremely pleased to hear.
The president noted that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs last year organized a young ambassadors program, and the initiative has without a doubt has helped to foster interaction. The various activities carried out under this program are showing how diversity the ROC's diplomatic work is. The activities are quite substantive and pragmatic, he said.
President Ma then switched to the topic of the sinking of the South Korean naval vessel the previous evening. He said that the ROC's national security agencies, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of National Defense, and the National Security Council, displayed a high level of cooperation. Immediately after receiving news of the incident, measures were adopted to ensure that Taiwan was prepared for all possible contingencies. He mentioned that a small national security meeting was held at 11:00 p.m. Taipei time (midnight Palau time) and that various agencies were working to determine the accuracy of various reports. He said that he and officials traveling with him in Palau were in close contact with Minister of National Defense Kao Hua-chu and Premier Wu Den-yih.
President Ma said that after once the facts of the situation had been ascertained, it was decided that Minister of Foreign Affairs Timothy Yang and National Security Council Secretary-General Hu Wei-chen would stay at the hotel to monitor the situation, while the president would continue with his originally scheduled itinerary and arrangements with President Toribiong. The president commented that he was quite pleased with the response by the ROC's national security agencies, including the Ministry of National Defense, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and National Security Council.
Lastly, the president remarked that he would like to extend his gratitude to the members of the media who accompanied him and his delegation on the six-day, six-night journey. The trip lasted 144 hours and included 18 take-offs and landings. The president was aware that it was very difficult in some of the places to file stories, but that the journalists were still able to accomplish their mission. He expressed his admiration for their perseverance, adding that he hopes that the next time he goes overseas, better arrangements will be made for the media to file their copy.