President Ma Ying-jeou met with US Congressman Elton Gallegly and Mrs. Gallegly at the Presidential Office on the morning of November 8. Besides expressing a warm welcome to the couple on their first visit to Taiwan, the president also commented that he hopes further bilateral cooperation will be achieved on the sale of arms to Taiwan, inclusion of Taiwan in the US visa-waiver program, and the signing of a bilateral extradition agreement.
President Ma congratulated Congressman Gallegly on winning re-election and said that he deeply appreciates the congressman's visit to Taiwan so soon after the election. President Ma noted that Congressman Gallegly is a senior member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, and the ranking Republican on the Subcommittee on Europe. Congressman Gallegly has been a good friend to Taiwan, he said, remarking that he endorsed House Concurrent Resolutions No. 266 (expressing support for the ROC's participation as an observer in the International Civil Aviation Organization) and No. 733 (extending condolences to Taiwan in the aftermath of Typhoon Morakot). Congressman Gallegly has joined with over 100 of his Congressional peers in supporting the sale of F-16C/D series jet fighters to Taiwan. The president expressed his deepest appreciation for the congressman's stance on all of these issues.
President Ma explained that the government over the past two years has strived to improve cross-strait relations, reduce tensions in the Taiwan Strait, put trade and investment ties between Taiwan and mainland China on a more systematic footing, and implement a policy of no surprises and staying low key. The government has actively pursued the resumption of mutual trust between Taiwan and the United States at the highest levels, he said. Bilateral relations currently are stable, and negotiations on a bilateral Trade and Investment Framework Agreement are poised to resume at the end of this year, the president noted. He furthermore said that Taiwan in the future hopes to acquire F-16 C/D series jet fighters from the United States, join the US visa-waiver program, and sign a bilateral extradition agreement. These measures will help to maintain Taiwan's aerial defense capabilities and strengthen mutual judicial assistance.
Congressman and Mrs. Gallegly were escorted to the Presidential Office in the morning by American Institute in Taiwan Taipei Office Director William Stanton to meet President Ma. Also attending the meeting was National Security Council Deputy Secretary-General Chih-kung Liu.