President Ma Ying-jeou, in the company of Vice President Vincent C. Siew, welcomed Republic of Honduras President Porfirio Lobo Sosa, Mrs. Lobo, and a delegation from Honduras to the ROC on behalf of the government and people of the nation. Meeting at the Presidential Office on the morning of November 15, President Ma also expressed his appreciation to Honduras for praising the ROC during the General Assembly of the United Nations in September of this year for the economic assistance it has provided over the course of many years, and for the support of Honduras for the ROC's participation in the International Civil Aviation Organization and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
President Ma noted that President Lobo previously visited the ROC in 2002 and 2005 as speaker of the National Congress of Honduras. He was inaugurated as president 10 months ago and is now making another trip here, underscoring the strong alliance between the two countries.
The president remarked that while countries throughout the world have felt the impact of the financial tsunami and economic recession over the past two years, the situation in Honduras was exacerbated by domestic political uncertainty. President Ma said that when he heard the news that President Lobo had emerged victorious in the election, he felt very happy for Honduras, and subsequently decided to attend President Lobo's inauguration to demonstrate the ROC's resolute support for democracy in Honduras and that nation's return to constitutional government.
President Ma commented that President Lobo has worked since taking office to fulfill his campaign promises, promote social harmony, and reconcile political disputes. President Lobo has also sought to win diplomatic recognition and have Honduras return to the international community, President Ma said, adding that significant progress has been made on these fronts, and the ROC, as an ally, shares in the honor that Honduras has won for itself. As relations between Honduras and other nations gradually return to normal, international bodies are beginning to provide loans and assistance, enabling that nation's economy to achieve a steady recovery. President Ma also expressed his confidence that breakthroughs will be seen in trade between the ROC and Honduras this year.
The president stated that the ROC has signed free trade agreements with five nations in Central America, and statistics indicate that exports from the region to the ROC in 2008 multiplied by a factor of 16 compared with the figure in 2003, which points to the trade benefits of such agreements.
President and Mrs. Lobo, Foreign Minister Mario Miguel Canahuati and Mrs. Canahuati, and other members of the delegation were escorted to the Presidential Office in the morning by ROC Minister of Foreign Affairs Timothy Chin-tien Yang to meet President Ma. Also attending the meeting were ROC Presidential Secretary-General Liouyi Liao and National Security Council Secretary-General Hu Wei-jen.