President Ma Ying-jeou and Republic of Panama President Ricardo Alberto Martinelli Berrocal held discussions at the Presidential Office on the morning of October 22. Besides extending a warm welcome to his counterpart on behalf of the government and people of the ROC, President Ma reiterated the importance that the ROC places on the alliance between the two nations. He expressed his appreciation to Panama for resolutely supporting the ROC in the international arena, and furthermore said he hopes the bilateral relationship will continue to strengthen in the future.
President Ma stated that relations between the ROC and Panama trace back 101 years to 1909 when China was under the late Qing Dynasty. The longstanding alliance is an extremely friendly one, he commented, adding that although this marks President Martinelli's first trip here as head of state, he is nevertheless no stranger to the ROC, for he already visited Taiwan 10 years ago as a businessman.
President Ma said that last year Taiwan was impacted by the global recession and the nation's economy contracted. However, he pointed out that he was extremely impressed by the prosperity and progress he witnessed in Panama when he visited there last year to attend his counterpart's inauguration on June 30. President Ma commented that prior to last year, Panama's economy was growing at an annual pace of 6-7%, and last year it was able to record 2.4% growth. In addition, growth this year is expected to exceed 6%. Panama's ability to establish a stable economic development model amid the global downturn points to President Martinelli's outstanding leadership, he said.
President Ma specially mentioned that, in September of this year, President Martinelli during the General Debate of the United Nations General Assembly in New York welcomed the warming in relations across the Taiwan Strait, and also expressed his support for Taiwan's participation in the International Civil Aviation Organization and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. For this show of support, President Ma expressed his deepest gratitude on behalf of the government and people of the ROC.
President Martinelli thanked the ROC for its long-term contributions to his nation, mentioning as examples the cooperation and assistance offered in the areas of infrastructure, medical institutions, agricultural technology, and information technology. He said that the government and people of Panama deeply admire the disinterested generosity of the ROC. President Martinelli reiterated that there will be no changes to the strong bond of friendship between the two nations. He furthermore expressed his desire for closer bilateral cooperation in economic relations, trade, education, culture, and tourism. This, he said, will enable the bilateral relationship to continue to grow steadily.